


In This World

by CupCakezys



Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Underfell, And Grillby too., Body Possession, Character deaths that mean nothing because Frisk can load., Emotional Manipulation, F/F, F/M, FIGHT FIGHT FIGHT FIGHT, Female Chara, Female Frisk, Flowey remembers Loads, Ghost Chara, Good Flowey, Grillbz is his one and only BFF, Or do they mean something?, Papyrus swears to seem tough, Sans remembers Loads, Sans stutters around people he's uncomfortable around., Sharing a Body, Spoilers, Swearing, Violence, Which is like everyone except his brother, briefly
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-02-10
Updated: 2017-09-03
Packaged: 2018-05-19 12:28:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 33
Words: 48,181
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5967436
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CupCakezys/pseuds/CupCakezys
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>This fanfiction is about Underfell, an Undertale AU where the monsters are all really mean and they all want to kill you. Your only friend is a terrified flower named Flowey. Together you must travel through the dangerous Underground and try to make it to the barrier in one piece. It’s going to be hard, but Frisk’s determined to do it, and make some new friends along the way.<br/>(I’m not sure who first made this AU but if anyone knows please let me know so I can put a link up to their work! Thanks!)<br/>{ And oh hey I recently got a tumblr account! Just search up Cupcakezys. I keep forgetting to say in each chapter update so I figured I'd just put it here. If you have any questions about anything let me know there. Or if you just want to have a chat about Undertale/any Undertale AU I would love that too! (◠‿◠✿) }</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Fallen

The girl blinked open her eyes slowly. She looked around and realised she was in some sort of cave.

_Where am I?_ She thought _And how did I-_

“Oh!” she exclaimed aloud as she remembered.

She had run as fast as she could and ended up lost on the mountain. She had been running so fast, and it was so dark that she hadn’t seen the giant hole until it was too late. She looked up and could faintly make out the stars above.

_There’s no way I can climb all the way back up, and I’m so far up the mountain that no-one would be around. Especially since it’s the mountain that no-one comes back from. Am I gunna be stuck down here and die?_ She thought and started panicking. _No one’s going to come looking for me. And those guys that were chasing me stopped at the base of the mountain, thank god. But I’m all alone. Oh god, I’m really gunna die I-_

“No!” She yelled aloud and quickly stood up and began pacing. “I’m going to be fine,” She spoke aloud to comfort herself. “I can climb up if I need to; it can’t be that far up, I survived the fall after all.”

_Wait how did I survive? It is a huge drop and I’m not even that hurt besides a few cuts and bruises..._ She looked down and saw that she had landed on a bed of soft golden flowers.

“How beautiful!” She exclaimed and bent down to examine them. “Oh no I’m so sorry I squished some of you!” She cried as she noticed the flattened flowers she had landed on. “Thank you for saving me though.”

She admired them for a moment longer then stood and turned. As she did so she noticed a small passage to the right of where she was standing.

_I wonder what’s down there?_ She walked down the passage and came across a huge door. _Where does this lead?_ She wondered as she pushed it open.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone!  
> So this is the start of my very first story I hope you all liked it. If there are any mistakes, or if you have any questions please put them in the comments and I will fix /answer them. I'm new to this site so if I mucked anything up with the tags and what not then please let me know! I have also posted this story on my Quotev account here: https://www.quotev.com/29378613  
> Anyway thank you all for reading, and stay tuned for the next chapter. ~CupCakezys~


	2. A Friend

On the other side of the door was a dark room with a beam of moonlight streaming in from a hole in the ceiling. The girl saw that the moonlight illuminated a patch of grass on the floor. Growing in the middle of that grass was a single, beautiful golden flower.

“Oh wow. You’re the prettiest flower I’ve ever seen!” She exclaimed, running up to it.

“Thank you very much.” A voice said out of nowhere.

“AHHH!” The girl screamed as the flower moved and revealed a face.

“Don’t be scared! My names Flowey. Flowey the flower.” It said. “What’s your name?”

“Uh hi Flowey. My name’s Frisk.” The girl answered, stepping back nervously.

“Well howdy Frisk! Just a little friendly advice. In this world...” Flowey suddenly seemed much larger and scarier than before.

 ** _“_** ** _I_** ** _t_** ** _’s_** ** _k_** ** _i_** ** _l_** ** _l_** **_o_** ** _r_** ** _b_** ** _e_** ** _k_** ** _i_** ** _l_** ** _l_** ** _e_** ** _d_** ** _!_** ** _”_**

Frisk took another step back in fear when suddenly Flowey once again became small.

“And I don’t know how much more I can take.” He finished as tears formed in his eyes.

Frisk looked at the flower more closely and realised he looked a little messed up, his petals a little torn in places, like someone had been using him like a punching bag. Her heart went out to the small flower.

“It’s alright! I’ll be your friend Flowey.” Frisk smiled as she comforted the crying flower. “Do you want to come with me? I’m going to go find a way to get back to the surface.”

Although she had never imagined being fiends with a talking flower, or even that flowers could talk, Frisk found she couldn’t just leave him alone.

 _After all I know what it’s like to be scared and alone._ She shook the thought from her mind.

“Really? But the only way to return to the surface is to go through the Undergrounds and break the barrier. And to do that you would have to kill the monsters that live there.” Flowey said.

“Monsters?! What do you mean monsters? They’re real?” Frisk didn’t like the sound of that.

“Yeah. You see long ago humans and monsters lived side by side, above ground. Then the monsters did something... I’m not sure what, but it caused a war. Then seven of the humans’ most powerful magicians sealed us all in the Underground. Now the barrier can only be broken by seven human souls and one monster soul. That’s why the King, Asgore, made the law. ‘Any human that is found in the Underground must be killed and have their soul delivered to him. He already has six souls. If they get yours then they’ll be able to escape and take revenge on the humans.” He explains.

Frisk shivers at the horrifying tale she had just been told.

 _I have no idea what souls are, or how true his story is. After all there’s no such thing as magic. Then again, there is no such thing as talking flowers or monsters, yet here they are. But if it is true then it’s just like an old fairytale... Or a nightmare._ She shivered again.

“I don’t want that to happen, but I do wanna get back to the surface. Is there any other way?” Frisk asked.

“Well... Yeah...” Flowey mumbled. He looked like he didn’t want to continue.

 _I need to know!_ She knelt down next to Flowey

“Yes?” She pressed him.

“You would have to kill one of the monsters down here in the Underground and absorb their soul. That should give you enough power to pass through the barrier.” He reluctantly finished.

“Oh...” Frisk sat back upon hearing this. “I’m not doing that.”

“Those are the only ways to get out of here.” Flowey sounded sad as he said so. “See... Kill or be killed. That’s the world you fell into.”

_I can’t die. They would all be free to kill everyone above. Some people deserve that but not others. And I can’t kill anyone either. I’m sure most of them are nice, despite them being monsters. What does he mean by monsters anyway? Are they the scary things stories say will eat you? I hope not. How was I clumsy enough to fall down a giant hole? Oh!_

“What about the hole I fell into? Could we climb out of that and escape?” She asked.

“No. That hole you can only enter through. You can’t leave through it.” He told her.

_Damn. Maybe someone else knows another way. That king, Asgore... He may know. I wonder if he was the one who started the war years ago. Maybe he’s the only one who really wants to fight now. Well it’s worth a shot._

“Flowey what about Asgore?” She asked.

“Wh-what about him?” He asked.

“Do you think he may know of another way to get out of here?” She asked, standing.

“I don’t know b- but even if he did, he wouldn’t tell you. He needs your soul to free all monsters remember? He’d kill you before you even had a chance to ask.” He said sadly.

“It’s worth a shot! If he doesn’t know or won’t say then I’m sure we’ll find someone along the way who will. C’mon.” Frisk smiled and began walking towards the exit. She turned back as she noticed Flowey hesitating.

“You don’t want to come?” She asked.

“The monsters we are going to meet are really mean Frisk. They will try to kill us.” He said gravely.

“It’s going to be alright. You’ll see. I’m sure everyone can be a good person if they just try. And I’m really good at making friends.” She said walking back and holding out her hand to the little flower.

“Alright.” He replied, climbing onto her hand and then moving to sit comfortably on her head. “But don’t get your hopes up too high okay?”

“I told you to stop worrying! It’ll be fine.” Frisk told him as they stepped through the door.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone!  
> Chapter two is done! Thank you all for reading, and I hope you enjoyed the chapter. Anything you wanna say in the comments please feel free to.   
> Anyway thank you all for reading, and stay tuned for the next chapter. ~CupCakezys~


	3. First Sight

“What’s wrong with this door? It doesn’t have a handle.” Frisk said as she stared at the handless door.

“Oh I forgot to say. Monsters love puzzles. They’re a defense mechanism, designed to slow down any humans that fall down here. This is one of them. See those buttons over there? You have to step on them in a certain order.” Flowey told her.

“How am I supposed to know what the right order is?”

“There are always clues on how to solve each puzzle. The paper over there should say-” Flowey was cut off as the door began to open on its own. “Oh no! Quick we gotta hide!” He hissed quietly, leaning towards the corner of the room. Frisk quickly ran over and pressed herself against the wall.

“Why do we need to hide?” She whisper-asked, but Flowey simply shushed her.

He looked so scared it made her feel scared too. When the door had finished opening a tall figure walk through. Frisk clamped her hands over her mouth to stop the scream that suddenly wanted to burst from her throat.

The monster was covered in white fur. It had small horns coming out of its head, almost like a goats. Its eyes were yellow where normal eyes were white, and its pupils were pure red. It had two small fangs and sharpened claws. It wore a black dress with strange symbols on it. It looked sort of like a bird spreading its wings over three eggs. Frisk knew she had seen it before but couldn’t remember what it was called. Its feet were bare and its toes were also sharpened claws. It looked like it ate children like her for breakfast.

Frisk let out a small whimper as she disappeared into the room they had just come from. Flowey immediately leaned down and whispered in her ear.

“It’s alright. That’s Toriel. She’s not too bad. But we need to go now before she gets back. The doors still open, let’s go.” He leaned towards the open door, his small weight enough to make her fall if she didn’t move.

Frisk shook her head as they stepped into the next room. It was long, with three different rivers that ran across her path, each with a bridge so you could cross to the other side. She crossed the first bridge and leaned against the wall. She needed a moment to calm down.

“So that was a monster huh?” She asked the flower above her.

“Yes. She goes to tend the flowers every day. She won’t be done for ages though, so we’re safe as long as we keep moving. Monsters don’t all look like that though. Everyone looks different.” He replied, moving to sit on her outstretched palm so they could talk face to face. “Do you still think they’ll listen?”

“Of course!” Frisk said, suddenly pushing off the wall. “I told you before didn’t I? Everyone can be a good person if they try. I’m sure!”

“Frisk I dunno. Six other kids have already died down here. The monsters killed them. Do you really think they’ll change?”

“Well we can’t be sure until we’ve tried, now can we? Now could you help me? There are spikes on this bridge and I can’t get across.”

The little flower sighed and moved back to her head. “Do you see that switch over there? Go press it. The spikes should disappear.” She did as he said and the spikes disappeared into the ground.

“Thank you Flowey.” She said as she reached up and tickled him.

“Hahaha! H-hey stop that Frisk! I’m very ticklish!” He yelled between giggles.

“Never!” Frisk exclaimed as she kept tickling the wriggling mass above her. They both laughed as they entered the next room.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone!  
> Chapter three’s done! So I have decided to update every Sunday and some bonus days. So yay!  
> I hope you all enjoyed the chapter, please let me know in the comments if I made any mistakes or if you have any questions about anything. Also let me know what you think of the story.  
> Thanks for reading everyone, I’ll talk to you again in the next chapter.  
> ~CupCakezys~


	4. #1 Frisk

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just before you read this I just thought I should say; this is not a normal chapter. It is a character profile, and you don't have to read it if you don't want to. This is just letting you get to know the characters a little more. The first one is Frisk (obviously). I'm going to do this for characters I feel need a little more explaining, or that I just love. Anyway I hope you enjoy, and please tell me if you think these are a good idea, or who you want me to do a profile for next!

In the Underground:

In my version of Undertale Frisk is a girl. She’s 14 years old, but her 15th birthday (June 12th) is only two months away. She’s short for her age, around 149 cm. Her eyes are a soft chocolate brown that seem to sparkle whenever she’s happy or excited. She has brown hair that’s a little longer than her shoulders. She wears a long sleeved top that’s pale blue, with two purple-pink strips on it. Her shorts are jean-shorts, and stop just before they reach her knees. Her boots are brown and stop just before the reach her knees.

On the Surface:

Normally she wears blue or purple short sleeved tops, but she gets cold easily, so she almost always has a jacket with her. Her jackets are all sky blue, and have hoods and deep pockets. If the weather gets really hot she’ll wear her only tank top, which is pale pink.

Despite how cold she gets, she hates wearing anything that goes near her knees. She likes wearing sneakers, but most of the time she wears long boots, as they keep her legs warm. When she’s at home she will often walk around with a blanket around her.

She likes to keep her hair short, just above her shoulders, but people always tell her she should grow it longer. Whenever she gets hot or it annoys her, she’ll put it up in a ponytail or bun, but most of the time she likes it out.

Because she’s so short, people will sometimes mistake her for a younger kid. She’ll normally just go along with whatever people think, mostly because she loves the surprise on their faces when she tells them her real age.

Her Personality:

Her personality only makes her seem more like a little kid. She is extremely childish. She never swears, and will tell someone off if they do front of her. When she gets excited she tends to bounce up and down and clap her hands. When she’s sad she will try not to cry if people she doesn’t trust are around, however once she’s alone or with a friend she’ll bawl her eyes out. When she’s happy she’ll randomly start grinning real wide, and if anyone asks about it, it will make her laugh and smile wider. When she’s mad she’ll stop her foot and screw up her face. She loves jokes and puns; however she’s terrible of thinking of any.

Even if she is childish most of the time she is still a teenager. She will often answer silly question sarcastically, and if someone disagrees with her she will argue with them until they agree with her, or until she’s fed up and storms out of the room. No matter how mad she gets though she will almost never raise her voice.

She has very little patience, and gets frustrated and annoyed easily. If someone is mean to her in any way she will get them back, mostly by pulling some sort of prank on them. She loves snacks, especially chocolate, and will do almost anything if it means getting some.

She hates violence of any kind, and will get very upset when people start yelling or fighting. She believes that violence is never the answer, and if people just sit down and talk everything will work out. Despite this she took self-defense classes, and could fight if she had to, however she would only do this in extreme cases.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi again!  
> So yeah that was the first character profile! I hope you all liked it, I know it's not a proper chapter but I had the urge to write it so here it is. I'm going to continue this for other characters, but feel free to skip them if you want.   
> The next chapter should be up real soon, maybe around Friday afternoon. Thank you all for reading, I hope you like my story so far.   
> ~Cupcakezys~


	5. Floweys Tale

“Geez there sure are a lot of puzzles down here.” Frisk said as they finished yet another one and left the room.

“I told you, they’re meant to slow down any human that falls down here.” Flowey was glancing around like he expected something to jump out at them at any moment.

“What’s the matter?” She asked him.

“It’s been a while since I came out here that’s all. Normally I just stay back in the room you found me in. It’s safest.” He said in a small voice. Suddenly Frisk remembered how beat up he looked. Even his safest room was dangerous.

“Well don’t worry so much. We’re friends now and I’m not gunna let anyone hurt you. I promise.” She said, and she meant it.

“So you would fight monsters if they appeared?” Flowey asked.

“No. I hate fighting. I would talk to them and convince them to stop attacking. But I would make sure they focus all their attention on me and not you.” She explained as she walked. “Once they realise I’m nice they’ll be friends with me I’m sure. After all, you’re my friend.”

“Yes but I’m not exactly a monster anymore.” He sounded sad when he said that.

“What do you mean?” Frisk stopped and gently held the little flower at eye level. He sighed.

“I used to be. But.... Well... I guess it all began the very first time a human fell down that hole. You may want to sit down, this is going to take a while.” Frisk sat down and put Flowey on the ground. He looked around, eyes glazed over like he wasn’t really seeing what was in front of him.

“I wasn’t always a flower. I used to look much different. That woman we saw before? She’s actually my Mum.” He stopped and looked at her. She was shocked but she nodded for him to continue.

“One day I was playing around where you fell. I was mucking around with the flowers when I noticed a human girl lying there unconscious. I had grown up with stories on how mean humans are and how you should kill them before they get the chance to kill you. I was going to do it too, but she moved and I quickly hid. I wasn’t very brave, or aggressive like most monsters. Anyway, she looked around stood up. She.... She looked so scared. I moved to try and run and she heard me. I remember her spinning around and asking who was there. I stepped out from my hiding spot and showed myself to her. She screamed and begged me not to eat her. I realised we were both the same. She thought I was going to eat her and I thought she was going to kill me.” He swallowed, eyes lost in the memory.

“I told her I didn’t want to eat her. She didn’t believe me, not for ages. We just sort of stared at each other. After a while she sat and started talking. She told me all the stories she had grown up with, about how monster eat humans. I told her all the stories I had heard about dangerous humans. After a while we started trusting each other. We joked around. It was fun.” Flowey paused and sighed.

“She was so gentle. I knew, just from talking to her, that she would never hurt anyone. She wasn’t like the humans from the stories I’d been told. She was so kind. No one down here is like that. She told me her name was Chara and that she wanted to go back to the surface so she could find a family. Her parents had died when she was a baby. I decided that I would take her home with me. I wanted her to be part of my family. I thought maybe she could teach everyone to be like her. Everyone was so mean and thought love and gentleness was weakness. But talking to Chara I realised how wrong they were. She showed me kindness is strength. So I lead her to my house and left her in my room to go find Mum and Dad but when I got back... Dad had found her and killed her. And it was all my fault. I should have known better than to leave her alone.” Floweys voice trembled and he looked like he was about to cry.

Frisk silently picked him up and hugged him gently. Then he really did cry and Frisk rocked him in her arms and whispered that it was okay, everything would be alright, shhhhh. After a while he stopped crying and Frisk gently put him down again. He sniffed a bit then looked up at her.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to cry like that.” He said quietly.

“No it’s okay. If you don’t want to go on it’s fine.” She told him.

“No. I’ve come this far. I can finish. Don’t worry I’m fine now.” He took a deep breath before he continued. “Okay. Well while we were talking she said that she really wanted to see the flowers her mother had grown again. She looked after them after she died. But there was the barrier. Only seven human souls and one monster soul could break it. However there was a way for one monster to go through alone. If they devoured a human soul then they would be able to pass through it like it wasn’t there. So when I saw her soul floating there after Dad had killed her I..... I ate it. Mum and Dad protested and yelled at me, but I ignored them and picked up her body, and together we passed through the barrier. I walked down the mountain, all the way to her home town to see her flowers. However.... I wanted to bring six other souls back with us. Then everyone would be free! But Chara.... She didn’t want me to hurt anyone. She didn’t let me hurt anyone. When I devoured her soul she became a part of me and I could hear her voice in my head. But the humans saw her body and misunderstood. They thought I had killed her and attacked me. Chara wouldn’t let me fight back so I ran. They chased me and attacked me. Eventually I lost them but... I was wounded and when I got back home I died too.” Flowey suddenly stopped as he heard a muffled sniffle. He looked up and noticed Frisk was crying.

“Hey it’s okay. Don’t cry Frisk.” He tried to comfort her.

“I’m sorry. It’s just that, it’s so horrible. You tried to grant her wish only to be killed.” She sniffled.

“It was my own fault. I wanted to kill six other humans you know. I would of but Chara stopped me. If I had succeeded we would have been free and the war would have started again. Besides that, I wasn’t very nice to others back then. The only reason I didn’t kill Chara when I first saw her was because I was scared. And after we had talked I realised I wanted more of the kindness she had shown me. Monsters aren’t even nice to each other. Kindness is seen as a weakness, and if you display weakness, you get killed. If I hadn’t of been so scared...”

Frisk had stopped crying, and was rubbing her eyes. “You would have killed her?”

Flowey looked away. “I don’t know. I think so.”

They were silent for a while. Then Frisk broke the silence.

“Well how come you’re alive now? You said you died. And you’re a flower too. What happened?” She asked.

He turned. “Monsters aren’t like humans. Our bodies are completely made of magic, so when we die we turn to dust. I died on a patch of yellow flowers. I woke up in the Royal Scientists lab. She told me she had revived me. Sort of.”

“Sort of?”

“Yeah. I don’t have a soul.” He said. “I’m not a proper monster. I’m just a soulless flower.”

There was silence for a while as Frisk thought about this. Then she looked at him and smiled.

“Well I’m glad.” She said.

Flowey looked at her, clearly confused.

“I’m glad you’re here. I don’t care that you’re a flower, and I don’t care that you don’t have a soul. If you weren’t here I’d be alone.” She smiled at him, and after a moment, he smiled back.

“So tell me, why aren’t you with your Mum and Dad?” She asked.

“The Royal Scientist didn’t tell them what she had done. She thought she would impress them, but when she learned I had no soul she hid me. I’m different without my soul you know. She called me a mistake. Eventually I couldn’t take it and ran here.”

“Oh. And you’ve been hiding here ever since?”

Flowey nodded. He looked worn out from all the talking. They had been talking for a while. Frisk decided that was enough for now and stood and stretched. She bent down and scooped Flowey up.

“Let’s go Flowey, before your Mum gets here. By the way, Flowey can’t have been your name. Did you change it?” She asked as she began walking.

He nodded. “I did. Flowey just sort of suited me more now. Plus I didn’t want Mum or Dad to hear about a talking flower with the same name as their son.”

“Yeah that makes sense. What was your name before, if you don’t mind me asking?”

There was a pause. Frisk could tell Flowey was thinking hard about it.

“Asriel.” He finally said. “But I’m still Flowey now okay?”

Frisk nodded and Flowey moved to her head.

“Asriel’s a nice name though.” She said quietly.

“Yeah.” Was all he said.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone!  
> So here’s another chapter for you all. I hope you liked it.   
> So I should probably say this now; Chara is one of my favourite characters (Aww who am I kidding they all are!) and I love the little demon child to pieces. They probably won’t be in this fic that much, apart from the backstory bits. I’m not sure though I have the ending planned and not much else. Whatever comes to mind while I’m writing I’ll put down, which is probably not the best idea. Oh well!  
> Anyway I hope you enjoyed, if you have anything you want to say or my terrible writing confused you in anyway please put it in the comments. Thank you!  
> ~CupCakezys~


	6. Souls And Attacks

Frisk froze as a monster came into view in front of them. It was small, probably only coming up to her knee. It looked like a frog, but she knew it wasn’t. This was a monster, pure and simple.

 _Oh god it’s heading this way._ She would have panicked right then but Flowey made a small noise and hid behind her, and she knew instantly. This was the monster that had been hurting him. All her fear disappeared, replaced by sudden determination, and she walked back around the corner they had just come from.

“Oh golly what are we gunna do? He’s blocking our way. And if we stay here he’ll see us or Mum will on her way home. Oh no. Oh golly.” He started panicking.

Frisk was, however, quite calm. She gently picked him up and placed him on the floor. He stopped talking and looked up at her.

“I’m going to go talk to that monster. When I come back we’re going to continue on to the King. And he’s going to apologise for hurting you. Okay?” She said quietly.

“What? How did you know he hurt me?” He shook his head. “It doesn’t matter. You can’t! He’ll hurt you too! It’s best if we just... if we just....” He trailed off. There was nothing else they could do. Like he had said, if they stayed they would be found.

“It’s alright. You’ll see. I’ll be back before you know it. I promise. And I always keep my promises.”

“Okay. But let me teach you how monsters fight first.” Without even waiting for her to respond he moved a little further away then turned to face her.

Suddenly everything around them turned grey, and a red heart appeared glowing in her chest. Except for the heart, the rest of her was as grey as everything else. She looked up and Flowey and saw that he was completely white.

“Flowey what’s going on?” She asked, suddenly scared. “What is all this? And why is everything grey?”

“This is how monsters fight. Look down.”

She did and saw her name. Next to her name were some letters and numbers. It said LV 1 and next to that were the letters HP and a full bar that said 20/20.

She looked back up at Flowey. “What does all this mean?”

“Well first let me explain the LV. It stands for Level of Violence. You gain LV by getting Execution Points, or EXP, and you get EXP by killing.” He explained.

Frisk shuddered. _Hopefully that never goes up._

“Your HP shows how much health you have.” Flowey continued. “It’s full right now, but every time you get hurt it will go down. Once it reaches 0 you die, so be careful.”

“Is there a way to increase my HP?” She asked, eyeing it. 20 didn’t seem like all that much.

Flowey shook his head. “Not without increasing your LV. However food down here is magic. If you eat it your HP will be restored. How much HP is given back depends on the food.”

Frisk nodded slowly. “Alright.”

_It’s weird and really different from above ground but I guess I get it._

“Good.” Flowey nodded. “Now I’ll explain attacks.”

Several small white petals appeared around him. Frisk didn’t know why but seeing them caused her to take a couple of steps back in fear.

Flowey looked a little hurt. “Don’t worry, I’m only showing you. You trust me right?”

“Yes of course. I was just surprised is all.” Frisk swallowed her fear and walked back to where she had been standing before. “Keep going.”

“Okay. Well this is the magic I use to attack. They won’t hurt your body, but if they hit your soul then they’ll hurt.”

“My soul? Is that what you were talking about before?” She looked at him in confusion.

He nodded. “It’s that glowing heart in your chest.” He pointed to the heart she had seen earlier. “Every human and monster has a soul.”

“Oh. It’s really beautiful.” Frisk murmured.

She gazed at the glowing heart that was her soul. It was a deep red colour. Normally red reminded her of blood and death and anger. But this red glowed a soft, kind light. It was encouraging, and full of love. The colour only gave her good feelings. Flowey cleared his throat and she looked back up at him.

“Like I said, just don’t let that get hit and you won’t be hurt. I’m going to send these petals at you, just dodge them. They’ll be slow, so it should be easy. Ready?”

Frisk nodded. The white petals flew towards her, slowly and spaced far apart. She easily dodged them, and once they were all gone she turned to Flowey.

“I did it! Is that all?” She asked, grinning in triumph.

“No. You have to remember that every monster you meet down here will want to kill you. Their attacks will be much harder to dodge. If you’re facing someone stronger than you, you have to run. Most monsters aren’t that fast. You should be able to get away from them.”

“Alright I understand. I promise to be careful.” Frisk was still grinning.

The world around them filled with colour again, and when she looked down she saw her soul was once again concealed in her body.

“Are you sure you want to do this? It’s dangerous.” Flowey said.

She crouched down in front of him. “I know, but I’ll be fine. Thanks for your help.”

“You really shouldn’t go alone. I can come too.” He said it bravely, but he was clearly still afraid.

“No. I want you to stay completely safe. I’m going to go around there, ask him to let us through, and then come right back. Next time you can help.”

“Well..... Alright. But be careful. And if you need me, yell and I’ll come straight away.”

She nodded and stood, then turned and walked back around the corner to where she had seen the frog monster.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone!  
> Another chapter done! I hope you enjoyed it! This one was fun to write. :)  
> If there are any mistakes or you have any questions, tell me in the comments.  
> The next chapter will be up Sunday! Until then fellow humans!  
> ~Cupcakezys~


	7. Accidental Flirt

It was still there and this time Frisk stepped out so it could see her. It hopped forward and then stopped about five steps away. Frisk cleared her throat.

“Hello there. My name’s Frisk. What’s yours?” She asked.

For a second it looked like it would say something back, and Frisk felt a glimmer of hope, but then the world around her went grey and her chest glowed red. She gulped and looked at the now white monster in front of her.

“Listen, I don’t want to fight! I only want to pass by. I don’t mean you any harm.” She told it.

It considered this for a second, but then attacked. A swarm of what looked like white flies flew at her. They were faster than Floweys petals, and closer together as well. She dodged several of them before one hit her. It clipped the very top of her soul, and she saw her HP go down by one. It made her right shoulder sting, like it had hit her there instead. After she had dodged the rest of the flies she looked at it and noticed a scratch bleeding grey blood.

“Listen! Please. I don’t want to fight you! I won’t fight you. I only want to go home. Please let me pass.” Frisk pleaded.

More flies came at her. She managed to duck the first few as they flew past. The next couple had her dodging left and right like crazy. The last couple were easier, she simply jumped over them. One touched her leg but it didn’t hurt at all, and just passed through her like she was made of smoke.

_How can I win him over? Telling him I mean no harm doesn’t seem to be working._ Frisk looked more closely at the monster. _It really does look just like a really big frog. It even makes sounds like one every now and again. I know it’s dangerous and wants to kill me but still it looks so..._

“Cute.” She hadn’t realised she had spoken out loud until the monster croaked. It looked like it was blushing slightly.

“Sorry! I didn’t mean to say that out loud. I just think you are very cute.” She told it. It blushed even more. “And strong. I’ve never fought a monster as strong as you.”

_Technically not a lie. It doesn’t need to be said that it’s the only monster I’ve properly fought right?_

After hearing this, the monster in front of her puffed its chest out, almost like it was trying to look even more impressive. Frisk laughed.

“Yes you look very impressive.” She said, giggling. “What’s your name mister? I already said but mine’s Frisk.”

The monster croaked out something that sounded like ‘Froggit.’

“Well hello Froggit. Would you like to be friends?”

Froggit seemed confused at this, almost like he didn’t know what a friend was.

“A friend is someone you care about and protect, and they do the same for you. Someone that you like and enjoy spending time with.” She explained.

He considered this for a moment and then nodded. The world around her gained its colour again.

Frisk bounced up and down and clapped her hands. “Yay! Thank you Mr Froggit. But listen, I think you hurt my other friend before. His name’s Flowey.” Froggit looked confused. “He’s a small golden flower?” At that understanding dawned in his eyes.

“Well I think you should apologise. It’s not nice to hurt people after all.” She told him.

Froggit looked down in shame and nodded. He seemed very eager to impress her, as his new friend. She led him back to where Flowey was waiting. He looked up as they approached and instantly moved back when he saw Froggit.

“It’s alright Flowey. Froggit here just wants to say something to you.” She said and looked down at him.

Froggit slowly hopped forward until he was right in front of Flowey, who looked like he wanted to run.

‘Sorry.’ Froggit croaked and Flowey stared at him.

“Umm. Thank you?” He said, completely shocked. Apparently apologies weren’t something monsters said very often.

Froggit hopped for joy and then hopped towards her and into her arms. He was heavier than he looked though, and they both went down.

“Frisk! Are you okay?” Flowey yelled as he raced over.

He stopped when he realised Frisk was laughing. She sat up and pushed Froggit off her and next to Flowey. Still laughing she turned to them.

“I was not expecting that. I’m so sorry. Did I hurt you?” She said between giggles.

Froggit shook his head, and beside him Flowey exploded.

“FRISK! Are you kidding me? I was seriously worried you were hurt then! Don’t scare me like that!” He was shaking.

Frisk stopped laughing instantly as she looked at her friend.

“I’m sorry Flowey. But I’m fine see?” She held out her arms, and then saw her shoulder. “Well except for that, but it doesn’t hurt, and it’ll stop bleeding soon. And Froggit’s fine too so everything is okay.”

“Yeah, okay. You sure you’re okay? Isn’t the red stuff supposed to stay inside of you?” He said.

“Errr well yes but humans start bleeding whenever they get hurt. It’s only a little scratch though so it should be fine.” Frisk said.

“Well if you’re sure.” Flowey still seemed upset, but he assumed she knew what she was talking about.

A sudden croaking caused them both to look at Froggit. “Help.” He croaked.

“You want to help? It’s fine. It doesn’t even hurt anymore.” Frisk said.

Froggit shook his head. He was determined to help her. “Heal.”

Flowey understood. “Monsters are made of magic Frisk. What type of magic they can use depends on the monster, but most have the ability to heal. If you let him, Froggit can heal you.”

“You can really do that?” Frisk asked, looking at him in awe.

Froggit nodded. Frisk grinned and looked back at Flowey, who seemed troubled.

“Hey. Everything alright?” She asked him.

“Yeah fine.” He smiled.

“Okay. So how does this work?” She asked.

“Concentrate on your soul. Will it to appear outside of your body. It will, and then Froggit should be able to heal it.” He glared at Froggit, and Frisk understood why he looked so worried.

_He didn’t fully trust Froggit. If I bring my soul out, it will be very vulnerable, and if he decides to attack it will be too late to do anything. Calling your soul out like this.... it must take a great deal of trust. And I from what Flowey’s told me, monsters don’t trust each other very much. Probably because no-one really does anything nice for anyone else. But..._ She looked at Froggit. _I do trust him. He’s my friend, and friends trust each other._

Mind made up, Frisk closed her eyes and concentrated. She imagined the soft red glow in her chest, and then imagined it leaving her chest and floating in front of her. She heard gasps from Flowey and Froggit and opened her eyes.

In front of her was her soul. It was floating around her chest height. She brought her hands up and cupped them around it. The glow covered her hands as she looked at it in fascination. She startled and looked up when Froggit croaked.

“You may want to hurry Frisk. It’s dangerous to have your soul out like that.” Flowey was looking at her soul with the same fascinated look she had been giving it.

“Right.” She turned to Froggit and held her hands out, showing him her soul.

He summoned several flies and they surrounded her soul. She panicked and was bringing it back to her when Flowey told her to stop.

“It’s alright. They’re green, the colour of healing magic.” He said.

She nodded and held her soul out again. One by one the flies flew into her soul. She felt a pleasant feeling wash over her, like she was suddenly being wrapped up in her mothers’ arms. When all the flies were gone she returned her soul to her body. Then she looked at her shoulder and saw that there was nothing there anymore. It was completely healed.

“That’s amazing! Thank you!” She said, leaning forward and hugging him.

Froggit croaked that it was nothing and when she pulled back Frisk noticed he was blushing slightly.

“Thank you for healing me, but we should be going.” She said, standing. “We have a King to meet!” She picked up Flowey and put him on her head. She then turned to Froggit, who was looking up at her. “If you want to come along you can.”

Froggit looked sad and shook his head and croaked ‘Can’t.’

“Well alright then. I hope we’ll see you again later. Bye Froggit!” She said and waved as she walked off. Flowey called goodbye too and then they rounded the corner and he was out of sight.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone!  
> Here's the next chapter for you all. This is my favorite chapter so far so I hope you guys like it! Please comment any mistakes you see, or just what you think about the chapter in general.   
> So Frisks first battle went well huh? Good thing she slipped and thought out loud, otherwise who knows what would of happened? And it's only going to get harder after this! :)  
> Aaaaannnnnyy waaaaayyy hope you enjoyed this chapter!  
> ~Cupcakezys~


	8. #2: Flowey/Asriel

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys!  
> Here's another character profile thing for you all. Hope you liked it!  
> Again just thought I'd say that you don't have to read these if you don't want to. They're just some extra little things I wrote about each character that I thought I might as well share. If you wanna skip these and just read the actual story then that's fine.  
> My Chapter Notes button isn't working right now so that's why this is in the chapter summary once it's working again I'll change it.  
> ~CupCakezys~

Asriel:

The young Prince of the Underground. Asriel had just turned 12 when he died. His birthday was on August 23rd. He was a little shorter than Frisk is, around 143 cm. He had eyes like his mothers, the whites of them yellow with red pupils. He had tiny fangs that had just started growing in.

He would only ever wear red and black long sleeved tops. Most of these would be striped but some he liked just plain black or red. He did have one red top with the Delta sign like on his mother’s dresses that he would wear on special occasions, though he hated it and often Asgore had to force him to put it on.

Like all monsters Asriel was mean to everyone around him, though he didn’t want to be. He was like his mother, wishing he could be kind, but knew it would just get him killed. He was also quite the scaredy cat, despite the brave front he was forced to put up as the Prince. He was terrified of the older monsters, and even the other kids scared him. He always played it cool until he was alone again, and then he would collapse and let out all his emotions.

Flowey:

The soulless version of Asriel. Flowey was created when the Royal Scientist tried to inject determination into an intimate object. She was also trying to bring Asriel back to life to get in King Asgores good books.

He is a small yellow buttercup flower and is only as tall as Frisks knee. He hates violence and when someone attacks him he will run away first chance he gets. Because of this he often has HP missing, and little tears in his petals. He’s scared of mostly everything, and hid away in the same room by himself for ages until Frisk convinced him to leave.

He’s very emotional and will cry at the smallest things, or laugh for ages at something he found funny. He wants to protect his friends however he believes he’ll only get in the way, or hurt them himself, so he’ll do nothing until the last moment when he’s gathered all his courage. He doesn’t have much self-confidence, however being with Frisk is helping him gain more.

When Frisk found him he was terrified at first, but when he saw her he couldn’t believe his eyes. She looked so much like Chara that he stuck around and didn’t hide like he usually did when she came up to him. Frisk was so much like Chara that he couldn’t say no to her when she asked him to go with her.


	9. Laughter, Music…

“Your head’s extremely comfortable, you know.” Flowey said from above her.

“Really? Well I’m glad. Wouldn’t want you to be uncomfortable now would we?” Frisk said sarcastically.

“And your hair is super soft too!” he exclaimed.

As he said this he moved around on her head and made her hair fly everywhere with little vines. Frisk could feel her hair getting tangled.

“Hey stop that! You’re getting knots in it!” She grabbed at him, but he dodged.

“Aww it’s okay. I can fix it!”

Flowey stopped messing with her hair and used his vines like little combs. Her hair was knot-free in no time.

“Is that better?” Flowey asked smugly.

“Yes it’s much better thanks.” She said.

She stopped walking and motioned for him to come down and sit in her hand. He did, although he suddenly had a bad feeling. Frisk grinned at him, and then began tickling him. Flowey immediately started wiggling around and laughing uncontrollably, begging her to stop between laughs. After a while she stopped tickling him and started walking again, while Flowey kept laughing weakly in her arms. When he had finally calmed down he glared up at Frisk.

“What was that for?” He complained.

“That was for messing up my hair-”

“I fixed it!”

“And because since I learned how ticklish you are I’ve wanted to tickle you for ages.” She finished.

“Jeez! And I thought you were nice. How could you torture me like that?” He huffed.

“Being tickled isn’t that bad.”

“Oh really?” He gave her a sly grin. “Then how do you like it!”

Flowey suddenly grew lots of little vines and used them to try and tickle her; however Frisk didn’t even stop walking. He retracted his vines and frowned.

“No way! Why won’t it work?”

“Simple.” She put him back on her head. “I’m not ticklish.”

“That’s not fair!” He complained.

Frisk just laughed and started skipping as they moved on to the next room.

 

                                                         *****

 

“That rock was very nice.” Frisk said as they passed a mouse hole and a table with cheese on top.

There was a pretty golden light covering the table and Frisk couldn’t help but run her hands along it. She stood transfixed as a strange feeling passed through her before Floweys voice brought her back to reality.

“Nice! He kept yelling at us to leave him alone!” He protested.

“But he moved for us in the end.” She said as she resumed moving.

“Only so we’d leave him alone. He would never have moved otherwise.”

Frisk rolled her eyes then stopped. She suddenly had a very bad feeling.

 _What’s this feeling? It’s just another room. There’s nothing in here._ She tried to calm herself down. The room was empty after all.

“Hey Frisk.” Flowey moved down her arm and she held her hand up so he could sit there. “Something feels..... wrong.”

“You feel it too?” She asked.

He nodded and Frisk hugged him close. They were just passing over a pile of red leaves when she heard something behind her. She froze and spun around, but nothing was there. She gulped and Flowey whimpered, then turned around to keep moving forward and screamed.

Before her was a moving shadow. It looked a little like a ghost with no feet or arms, and floated in front of her and glared. It was a little smaller than her, coming up to her chin, and it was completely black. There were headphones around its head, and Frisk could hear the music blaring from where she was standing. Its mouth and eyes seemed to be glowing blood red, and it looked ready to kill her.

“I was pretending to sleep! How dare you come in here and disturb me!” The ghost-like monster yelled.

Frisk took a step back and was about to run when the monster seemed to realise something.

“Wait... you’re a human, aren’t you?” His eyes glowed brighter. “All humans that fall down here must be killed and have their soul delivered to the King! And the monster who delivers your soul... shall be me! I’ll finally be more famous than that no-good cousin of mine!” He laughed.

As he laughed everything around her turned grey and her soul appeared, glowing faintly in her chest. She saw her HP appear as Flowey moved to her head in an attempt to look bigger and more threatening to the enemy. His name, LV and HP glowed white just above her own. Frisk swallowed and took a step back.

“U-umm please Sir we only want to pass through.” Frisk stammered.

“Ha! No way am I passing up this opportunity! Your soul is going to help me become famous. Now hurry up and die!” He yelled.

The music blaring out of the monsters headphones grew louder and Frisk tensed as white music notes appeared around the ghost. Three flew towards her and she ducked under them seconds before they could touch her soul. Several more appeared right in front of her and she quickly jumped and rolled as they whizzed past.

She felt a sharp pain on her shoulder and looked to see it bleeding grey blood. She grit her teeth against the pain and looked at the monster attacking them. He was glaring at her but no more notes were appearing to attack her.

 _I guess it takes time to summon more?_ She guessed.

She quickly used this to her advantage, fixing her stance so that she could easily dodge another round of notes.

“Frisk!” Flowey whispered urgently. “We have to run away! If we can just manage to run faster beck the way we came then-”

“It wouldn’t work.” Frisk interrupted. “We can’t go back, not with your Mum back there. We have to get past him somehow.”

Flowey didn’t say anything back, mostly because he couldn’t. Frisk was right; they didn’t have any other option but to stand and hope they would be able to slip past or convince him to stop. Frisk took a deep breath and called out to the monster.

“Umm Mister? You said something before about a cousin of yours?” She asked, hoping to get him talking so he wouldn’t fight.

Right away Frisk knew this was a mistake. His eyes glowed red with pure rage and he instantly started yelling.

“OH IT’S ALWAYS ABOUT HIM ISN’T IT? THAT WEAK COWARD WOULD NEVER HAVE SURVIVED WITHOUT ME! AND YET HE GOES AND LEAVES ME FOR A DAMNED BODY!” He screamed.

Music notes appeared all around her and she cried out as three of them pierced her soul before she could move. Her eyes flicked down to her HP briefly and she was alarmed to see it already down to 14. Seconds later her world filled with music notes and she was forced to constantly keep moving to avoid getting hit.

Two sped past her head and one passed straight through her stomach, barely missing her soul. She cried out as one managed to chipped the side of her soul and jumped over another one that was about to hit her. She zig zagged between several of them as they came flying at her and rolled to the side as another came within millimetres of hitting her. She ducked as the last couple notes flew past her when suddenly she heard a cry from above her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys!   
> Here's the next chapter! I'm sorry for not updating in ages. I had all of his story written out in a word document, and I'd done all the way up to chapter 16 of the main story, but it got corrupted and then deleted so I lost everything. I'm currently re-writing everything so please bare with me.I'm very upset with myself for losing it all and I'm sorry I couldn't update like I promised on Sunday but I had nothing to post.   
> Anyway yeah here's Napstablooks fight. Hope you guys enjoyed, please if you see any errors or have anything to say let me know in the comments. Thank you for baring with me as I re-do everything.  
> ~Cupcakezys~


	10. ….and Tears

Frisk froze as she heard the soft whimpers coming from above her.

_Oh no._ She thought, a sense of dread overtaking her _. Flowey!_

She glanced over at the ghost monster and was relieved to see he hadn’t summoned any more attacks. He was panting and looked worn out from the yelling and massive attack but Frisk hardly even noticed as she reached up and gently removed the small flower from her head. He was badly hurt, his petals torn and his HP was down to 7.

_Oh no, oh no, oh no!_ She panicked, cradling him close to her chest.

“I-I’m okay Frisk. Don’t worry.” He smiled up at her.

She shook her head, tears dripping down her face. “I’m sorry this is all my fault! If I had just listened to you and ran none of this would of happened and-”

“And then Toriel would have caught us, just like you said.” He interrupted, then paused as he coughed. “I’m going to be fine.”

_He’s badly hurt yet he’s still being so brave just for my sake! Oh no this is all my fault what do I do? I have to get him to safety somehow!_

Frisk bit her lip and glanced back up at the ghost. He was watching them but doing nothing else. She took two steps back then turned and slowly walked towards a corner of the room that was relatively safe. She crouched down and gently lowered Flowey to the ground.

“W-What are you doing?” He asked, confused.

“I’m protecting you.” She answered as she stood. “Stay here. I’ll come get you when he’s calmed down and it’s safe.”

Frisk ignored his protests and walked back towards the ghost monster.

She wiped her eyes dry and looked him in his eyes. “Please listen. I don’t want to fight. I just want to go talk to the King.”

The ghost was visibly taken aback and terror passed through his eyes before he started laughing like she had just told him the funniest joke he had ever heard.

“You want to TALK to the KING?” He asked, shaking his head. “And you actually think he’ll listen before ripping your soul out of you?”

The image of her soul being ripped out of her caused her voice to shake. “Y-yes! I’m sure he’ll listen-”

“Then you’re a fool.” He interrupted. “A fool who should just DIE ALREADY!”

Frisk flinched back and prepared to dodge but nothing happened. Not a single note appeared. She looked around in confusion then looked back to the ghost. His eyes were closed and he seemed to be concentrating.

_Probably gathering magic or something._

“Hey, um Mister… about earlier… I’m sorry for upsetting you.” She said, hoping he would stop and talk.

He opened his eyes but said nothing.

“I just… I didn’t realise you didn’t like your cousin. I thought you might want to talk about him.” She continued hesitantly.

“Why would I like the weakling? He hid behind me for years, and I let him, and then he just GOES AND LEAVES ME ALONE!” His voice had steadily gotten louder as he spoke, until he was yelling again. “HE LEFT ME FOR A BODY AND THEN WENT AND GOT FAMOUS. AND NOW EVERYONE THINKS HE’S SO STRONG AND COOL BUT HE’S NOT, I AM. I’M THE ONE WHO LOOKED AFTER US ALL AND EVERYONE JUST!”

He stopped shouting and took a deep breath to calm down. He stared at the ground and Frisk frowned as a different expression appeared on the ghosts face. _He doesn’t look angry anymore. He just looks…_

“Everyone just left me alone.”

_Sad. Sad and so very very lonely._ She realised.

Frisk opened her mouth to say something when everything filled with colour again. She hesitated for a moment then walked slowly towards him. He didn’t notice and as she got closer she saw his eyes were full of unshed tears. All her fear immediately washed away and was replaced by concern. The ghost monster looked up just as Frisk wrapped her arms around him.

“W-what are you doing? What type of attack is this?” He stuttered, sniffling.

“It’s not an attack. It’s a hug.” Frisk said, tightening her grasp slightly.

_And I’m kinda surprised I can touch you since you’re a ghost._

“A hug?” He asked, confused.

“Something you give someone to make them feel better when they’re upset.” She explained.

“I’m not upset! Only weaklings get upset and I’m not a weakling. And even if I was upset I wouldn’t need to be comforted by a human.” He protested.

_He says that but he’s not pulling away._ Frisk smiled a little to herself.

“Being upset doesn’t mean you’re weak. Everyone gets sad sometimes, even the strongest of people. It’s nothing to be ashamed of.”

After the words had left her mouth the ghost gave ujp trying to hold in the tears. Frisk held him as he cried and made comforting noises to calm him down. She heard a noise at her feet and looked down. Flowey was sitting there and was looking up at her with a concerned expression. She gave him a comforting smile and mouthed ‘it’s okay now’ above the ghosts head.

After a couple of minutes his crying was reduced to small sniffles every now and again. He pulled out of Frisks hug and she bent down and picked up Flowey. As she did so she gasped as pain shot down both her arms and her side. She looked and saw her left shoulder and right wrist bleeding heavily, her blood soaking her clothes and dripping on the floor. Her top was stained red on her side from a slight gash that made her hiss in pain when she pressed on it.

“Frisk! Are you alright? Let me see where it hurts!” Flowey cried as he noticed her wounds.

“I-I’m fine… I just… need to… sit down for a bit.” She said as her knees buckled and she collapsed on the ground.

“Frisk!” Flowey yelled.

He panicked and wrapped his vines around her, trying to help her up, and flinched back when Frisk cried out in pain.

“I’m so sorry! Are you alright? I didn’t mean to hurt you!”

_He’s panicking. I’ve got to calm him down._ Frisk hissed out a breath as she pushed herself into a sitting position.

“Flowey listen I’ll be fine I just-” She started.

“I can help.” A soft voice interrupted.

They both turned to the ghost monster. He approached slowly with a small smile on his face. Flowey glared at him and was about to tell him to back off when Frisk shot him a look that screamed don’t. Frisk then turned to the other monster and smiled warmly.

“You can?” She asked.

He nodded. “I’ve had a lot of practice at healing. It’s not a skill many care for, at least not the strongest ones. Weaker monsters know a lot about healing magic, but it’s not something anyone’s proud of. The better you are at healing the more obvious it is that you’re weak.”

“Why is it more obvious?” Frisk asked, confused.

“Because it means you’ve had a lot of experience getting beaten up and healing yourself after.” He replied as he sunk down in front of her.

“Oh.” She murmured quietly. “Well I think it’s is a skill everyone should be proud of. It could help so many.”

_Anyone who’s hurt, healed in an instant. It’s something that could save so many lives. Hospitals wouldn’t be needed anymore, but that’s not really a bad thing._

The ghosts’ small sigh brought her out of her thoughts. “No one really cares about helping anyone here.”

“Well Flowey’s helping me, and you’re helping me right now. And from the sounds of it you have others you care about that you used to look after. And if you care for others than I’m sure everyone else does too.”

Frisk wasn’t sure but she thought she saw a small blush spread across his cheeks.

“Y-yes w-well… how about we get back to healing you now huh? If you just summon your soul then I can-”

“Wait Frisk!” Flowey suddenly spoke up. “Do you really trust this guy? He’s the one who hurt you in the first place! And now you’re just going to give him your soul? Do you know how insane that is? We don’t even know his name and now you want to put your life in his hands after he just tried to kill you?”

“Oh that’s right, how rude! I’m Frisk and this is my friend Flowey. And your name is…?” Frisk asked, ignoring Floweys questions.

The ghost bobbed his head at her. “Napstablook.”

Frisk smiled. “Well it’s very nice to meet you Mister Napstablook.”

“Frisk! Are you even listening to me?” Flowey asked angrily.

She looked down at her friend. “Yes I am. It’s just that I trust him now.”

Flowey looked ready to explode. “You trust him now? After everything he’s done!”

“Yes.” There wasn’t a shred of doubt in her voice.

The two stared at each other for what seemed like ages before a small voice made them look up.

“Why?” Napstablook asked.

Frisk smiled gently at him. “Because I’m a very good judge of character and I can tell that you’re a good person.”

Napstablook frowned. “But I hurt you and-”

Frisk waved her hand, cutting him off. “It’s alright. I forgive you. Let’s start over okay?”

He hesitated for a moment then nodded. Flowey still looked sceptical but he trusted Frisk. She had gotten Froggit to apologise after all, something he thought was impossible. Frisk looked at Flowey, asking ‘should I do it?’ with her eyes. She still wanted to know what he thought, even if she would do it anyway. He sighed and nodded.

Frisk closed her eyes and concentrated. She imagined her soul, glowing its beautiful red, appear in her chest and then imagined pushing it outwards until it floated just in front of her. A warm red glow hit her closed eyelids and she opened her eyes to see her soul floating just where she had imagined it to be. Slowly she brought her hands up and cupped them underneath it.

She tore her eyes away from her soul and to Napstablook. He was staring at it in a wordless wonder, amazement written all over his face. She glanced at Flowey and saw he was the same, though he had seen it before.

A little embarrassed she asked, “Mister Napstablook?”

Both the monsters blinked as if coming out of a trance. Napstablook gave her a small smile.

“Your soul.... it’s….” He shook his head, unable to find the words.

“Amazing. Beautiful. Unbelievable.” Flowey whispered and Napstablook nodded.

Frisk blushed, even more embarrassed, and stuttered, “W-well thank you. Umm my side is really starting to hurt now so could you…?”

Napstablook nodded and concentrated. Green music notes appeared all around her and slowly started circling her soul. She laughed at the little dance they were doing and looked over to Flowey. Notes were dancing around him too, and one at a time they flew straight at him. He flinched, expecting an attack, but every time one disappeared into his body he looked better and healthier than she had ever seen him before.

Frisk turned her attention back to the notes dancing around her and watched in fascination as one by one they entered her soul. A warm and beautiful feeling surrounded her, just like it had when Froggit healed her. She closed her eyes and basked in the feeling until it had faded completely.

Slowly she blinked her eyes back open. She looked down at herself and saw everything was healed, and even the rips and blood on her clothes were gone. She stretched her arms and pressed her side and was still slightly surprised to see her wounds completely gone, just like that. Then she grinned at Napstablook and threw her arms once again around him in a hug.

“Thank you! That was so amazing! You’re so amazing!” She exclaimed excitedly.

Napstablook smiled shyly at her. She pulled out of the hug and bent down to Flowey. He moved to her open palm and then snaked up her arm to her head. She stood and turned to Napstablook.

“Thank you again for your help. Do you want to come with us?” She asked.

Napstablook shook his head. “I’m going to head home and… think about some things. If you want… you should stop by my house. It’s in Waterfall.”

“I’d love to visit you!” She said, smiling. “Until then though we have to get going. We’ll see you later!”

Frisk waved and walked on to the next room.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone!  
> Sorry this took so long! School's been kinda busy lately as well as some other personal stuff so I haven't been able to work on this as much as I like. Plus I got a little down after my other copy of this got deleted.  
> That being said here is another chapter for all you lovely people! This one is 8 pages and a line in word. 1) 8 pages is the longest I've ever written and 2) 8 pages and a line. One extra line! This makes me so mad it's silly.  
> Anyway hope you all enjoyed. Please anything you have/want to say don't hesitate. I'm happy about all feedback, just not the unnecessary hate stuff please.   
> ~Cupcakezys~ 


	11. A Decision Made And An Offer Given

“Wow.” Frisk said as she stared at the house in front of her. It was huge with two big windows beside a door. Red leaves were scattered all around the front.

_Those leaves are everywhere down here._

“It’s beautiful.” She breathed, barely above a whisper.

“Yeah it is. Let’s go inside.” Flowey said.

Frisk was about to walk in when she stopped and bit her lip.

“What about your Dad? I know your Mum’s at the flowers but what about him?” She asked.

“Toriel left him wen Asriel died. And actually.....” He trailed off.

Frisk knew this meant what he wanted to say was personal. And important.

“Yes?” She urged him to finish.

“My Dad.... He’s actually.... Kinda.... The king.” He said quietly.

Frisk felt her heart skip a beat. _The King? As in the one everyone’s terrified of? Including Flowey?_

She reached up and pulled him down to eye level.

“WHAT?” She yelled, right in his face. “You’re a Prince and you didn’t tell me? And that woman we saw before was the Queen?”

Flowey winced at how loud she was yelling.

“Well Ex-Queen. She gave up being Queen when she left the King. And Asriel was the Prince, not me.” He told her.

Frisk pouted and looked to the side, pretending to be upset with him. “You still could have told me.”

“I’m sorry.” He looked like he really meant it. “I just thought you might not like me anymore if you knew. I didn’t mean to- I just-”

“Hey it’s alright! I was only joking around, I didn’t mean to make you worry.” She reassured him. “Besides I could never hate you. You’re my best friend.”

Flowey smiled a tiny smile when he heard this and Frisk smiled back before hugging him. She looked back at the house and nodded. “Let’s go in then.”

She took two steps towards the door when a loud growling sound came from her stomach. Flowey burst out laughing and Frisks face turned bright red in embarrassment.

“Geez it’s not that funny!” She huffed.

Flowey shook his head and kept laughing. Frisk huffed again and walked up to the house and yanked the door open. She walked in and was surprised to find a staircase going down right in front of her.

_I wonder what’s down there?_ Just as she was about to go investigate a delicious smell reached her and her stomach growled even louder than before.

“Oh my god that smells A-MA-ZING! What is that?” She said, following the smell through a lounge room into a kitchen.

“It’s probably one of Mums pies.” Flowey said, finally calming down. “They’re always delicious.”

Frisk stopped as she caught sight of the pie. It was a huge thing, sitting on the counter. And it looked as good as it smelled.

“I could eat that entire thing, that’s how hungry I am.” She said, almost drooling.

Flowey laughed. “I’d like to see you try!”

“I could! And I’d prove it too but it’s not mine to eat.” She said, gazing at the delicious looking pie.

“You’re right. It’s not yours. It’s mine.”

The woman’s voice startled her and she shrieked as she turned around. The monster woman she had seen open the handless door was standing in the kitchen doorway. Her yellow and red eyes were glaring at her. She gulped.

_What did Flowey say her name was? Toriel? I think that was it. I hope that was it._

“Umm h-hello Miss Toriel. My name’s Frisk. I’m sorry about entering your house without permission, but I smelt the amazing pie here and had to see what it was.” She explained in a rush.

_I wonder if monsters can smell fear like animals can? If they can then she should know how terrified I am._ The thought passed through her mind and was then gone instantly when the monster woman spoke.

“How is it that you know my name, girl?” Toriel asked her.

“Oh, well errrr.” She stumbled.

Flowey had hidden the moment he’d heard Toriels voice but now he poked his head out from behind her and moved to sit in her open palms.

“I told her.” He told his mother in a quiet voice.

She turned her glare on him. Frisk felt relieved but also sorry for the small flower. Toriels gaze was hard to bare.

“And just why are you with this human child? Don’t tell me you’re helping her? You know the law little one. If a human is found they must be killed. Any monster that helps a human in any way is to be treated as a traitor and killed along with them.” She said the last bit with a strained expression, like she disagreed.

Frisk was shocked. _What?! They’ll kill anyone who helps me? Why didn’t anyone say anything?! I can’t put Flowey in danger like that! And Napstablook and Froggit… no one can know that they helped me._

Frisk opened her mouth to ask the millions of questions that were swirling around in her mind but Flowey spoke before she could.

“I-I am helping her. Frisk is my friend. We’re going to... to King Asgores castle anyway. Right, Frisk?” He looked up at her.

She swallowed her questions and nodded. “We’re going to ask if there’s a way for me to break the barrier without dying or killing anyone.”

“Well girl, I’m afraid that’s impossible. There are only two ways to break the barrier.” She looked almost sad for a moment, but then she was glaring again.

“We know that but we thought maybe the King knew of a different way.” She explained.

Toriel laughed, but it was a laugh without humour. “I very much doubt it girl. If there were other ways they would have been tried long ago.”

“I would still like to go talk to him. I want to learn more about you monsters. Maybe there’s a way out you missed.” She said.

“He would not talk to you, and nor would any other monster. As soon as they saw you they would attack.”

_Then why haven’t you?_ Frisk thought it best not to ask out loud.

“So it’s best you give up here. I promise to be quick and painless. Young monster, come here out of the way.” She held out her hand towards Flowey.

He shook his head. “No thanks. I refuse.”

“What?” Toriel asked, confused.

“Like I said before. Frisk is my friend. I believe in her. She’ll change all the monsters minds. And she’ll find a way out without anyone else having to die.” He told her, growing slightly so to hit Frisk would mean to hit him.

“It’s impossible young one. Humans are liars. If you stay with this girl she will turn on you and kill us all.” She spoke like she had experienced the same thing once.

“I don’t believe it. You’re not going to hurt anyone, are you Frisk?” He asked without turning around.

“That’s right. I’m not going to kill anyone. I’m not even going to scratch them.” She said.

“Then you will die.” Toriel responded.

“No I won’t.” She lowered Flowey so she could see Toriel properly. “I’m going to befriend all the monsters down here and then together we are going to come up with a way to get out of here.” She said, determination shining in her eyes.

Toriel looked shocked. Whatever she had been expecting her to say, that wasn’t it. She made a surprised chocking noise and spoke.

“Befriend? You think any monster in the Underground would want to be your friend? I told you before they will attack you on sight.”

“I know that. When they are fighting me I’ll talk to them. Convince them I want to help.”

“Monsters are not nice to humans. We are barely kind to each other. We started a war on the surface!”

“I know, but I’m sure you had your reasons. I don’t care how mean you are. Everyone can change, if they just try. I’ll show them.”

Silence filled the room. Toriel looked at the human girl in front of her for a long moment. She looked so much like the human girl her son had befriended years ago. The one she had watched her husband murder while she screamed for mercy. Toriel winced at the memory and brought her mind back to the present. The human child and monster were staring at her, waiting for her response. Once again Toriel was amazed at how similar she was to the first human. This girl had the same hair as the other human had, and they were about the same height. Her eyes had the same sense of determined kindness about them. All at once Toriel knew she couldn’t harm this child. Just like she couldn’t harm any of the other human children that came before this one.

She sighed. “Would you like some pie girl?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey Guys!  
> Aaaand enter goat mum! Haha I've been wanting to get around to this part for ages. Hope you guys liked the chapter. If you have anything you want to say please do, I love getting feedback on my stories.   
> Life is a bit hectic at the moment; what with school and my new job. (2nd shift is tomorrow!) So I'm sorry if updates aren't as frequent! Hope you all have a great day today. :)  
> ~Cupcakezys~


	12. Taking A Little Break

“Would you like some pie girl?” Toriel asked.

Frisk could only stare at her for a moment.

_Why is she asking me this all of a sudden? I thought she was going to try and kill me?_

Frisk hesitated, confused. She was about to say no thank you when her stomach growled, loud enough for them all to hear. Toriel laughed.

 _Oh boy that was really loud!_ Frisks’ cheeks were bright red from embarrassment.

“I will take that as a yes.” She said. “Move out of the way, I’ll cut you a slice.”

She stepped out of the way as Toriel briskly walked over to the cupboard and got out a knife. Frisk gulped and took a small step back when she saw the knife in her hand. Toriel didn’t notice and got her a plate then started cutting her a giant slice. She stopped and looked over at them.

“Would you like some too?” She asked, looking at Flowey.

“Umm yes please.” He said quietly.

She nodded and turned back to cut another slice.

“Both of you go into the lounge room and sit at the table. I will bring the slices out.” She said as she got another plate.

Frisk nodded, and then realized Toriel couldn’t see.

“Okay.” She walked back into the room next to the kitchen. It had a fireplace with a chair sitting in front of it and a table along the far wall. Frisk sat down at one of the chairs and Flowey sat next to her.

“Does this mean she likes me?” She whisper-asked him

“I think so.” He whispered back. “And just you wait-her pies are amazing!”

“Typical. Boys only ever seem to think about food.” She said, rolling her eyes.

“Hey! That’s not true! It’s just that it’s been forever since I had one!” He explained.

Frisk laughed. “Alright, alright I’m sorry. But how are you gunna eat it? You don’t have any hands!”

“Well....” Flowey grinned and Frisk watched as two vines with a leaf at the end of each grew from his middle. “Ta-da! Hands!” He said as he waved them around.

“That was amazing!” Frisk laughed as Flowey started posing with his new arms.

At that moment Toriel came in from the kitchen, a plate of pie in each hand.

“Here. It is still hot so blow on it before you eat it.” She said as she sat them down.

“Thank you Miss Toriel.” Frisk said before doing as she was told and blowing on her piece of pie.

“Just Toriel girl. Miss is too formal.” She snapped.

“Oh. Alright then, thank you Toriel.” She said and took a bite.

Taste exploded on her tongue. First the sweet taste of cinnamon and then butterscotch filled her mouth.

_Oh wow. This is delicious! It’s got to be the best thing I’ve ever tasted! Flowey was right, her pies are amazing._

After she had swallowed the first bite she turned to Toriel, who was sitting on the chair next to the fireplace, which now had a warm fire burning happily in it.

“This is amazing! It’s the best thing I’ve ever tasted! You’re an amazing cook Toriel.” She said.

“Thank you girl. I take much pride in my cooking. I’m glad you like it.” She said.

“Umm my name’s Frisk, not girl.” She told her.

Toriel tensed and stared at her for a moment and Frisk thought she was going to start yelling, but then she relaxed.

“Of course Frisk.” She replied.

Frisk nodded and turned back to eat the rest of her pie. As she did she noticed Flowey was almost done already.

“How did you eat it so fast?” She asked in disbelief.

“Skill.” He mumbled, his mouth full.

Frisk shook her head and took another bite of her slice, still amazed at how good it tasted.

 

*****

 

“Finished.” Frisk called as she swallowed her last bit of pie.

“Took you long enough! I finished ages ago.” Flowey teased.

“Alright you two, take your plates into the kitchen and wash them up.” Toriel asked.

“Okay Toriel.” Frisk said and stood.

Flowey grabbed his plate and moved onto Frisks head. She walked into the kitchen and they dumped their plates in the sink. She tried to reach the tap but she couldn’t, even on tip toes, so Flowey reached over and did it for her. He grabbed a cloth and started cleaning his plate.

“You’re so tiny Frisk!” Floeey teased. “I didn’t really notice before but you are so small! Come to think of it Chara was just as tiny. Are all humans so small?”

Frisk rolled her eyes at her friends’ silliness. “No not all humans are as small as me. I’m just really small for my age.”

Flowey finished cleaning his plate and handed her the cloth. She took it and started scrubbing hers.

“How old are you anyway?” He asked

“I’m 14.” She thought for a moment. “Actually I’m almost 15. What about you? How old are you?”

“Well.... Before....” He trailed off, lost in his memory for a moment before he shook his head and continued. “I had just turned 12, but I’m not sure now. I don’t know how many years it’s been.”

Frisk nodded and put her clean plate on the drying rack next to Floweys. She turned and walked back to the lounge room and saw Toriel reading next to the fire.

“All done Toriel.” She said and sat at the base of her chair.

“Oh good.” Toriel said absently.

They sat in silence for a while, Toriel reading and Flowey half asleep in Frisks arms. She rocked him gently and tried to think of the best way to ask Toriel to help them get to King Asgore.

Finally Frisk organised her thoughts and spoke. “Umm. Toriel?”

“Yes?” She asked, turning to the next page.

Frisk gathered her courage and spoke in a rush. “Thank you for feeding us and looking after us. We really appreciate it. But we can’t stay forever and I was wondering if you could help us get to King Asgore? I want to talk to him.”

Flowey sat up in her arms and looked back and forth between the two of them. Toriel put her book down and started at Frisk with a stern expression.

“Frisk. Asgore will not talk with you. To go to him would mean to go to your death.” Toriels voice was matter of fact.

Frisk shook her head. “I’m sure if I told him I just wanted to talk, then-”

“He wouldn’t listen!” Toriel interrupted, her voice raising in anger. “He never has before. And he’s not going to change. Trust me, I know. I was his wife.”

Frisk flinched back from her tone but then stood up, holding Flowey to her chest and holding Toriels piercing gaze.

“Everyone can change. Everyone can be a good person. I know it.” Frisk drew herself up to her full height.

Toriels eyes turned cold and she stood from her chair, infinitely taller than Frisk could ever be. Frisks’ hands started shaking but she stood her ground as the goat-like monster glared down at her. Flowey was silent in her hands.

Toriel suddenly smiled sweetly down at her. “Very well. I can see you are not going to change your mind on this matter. But before you go you should both rest. I will show you to your room.”

Toriel pushed past her and walked down the hall. Frisk and Flowey exchanged glances then she followed after her. They walked past the oddly placed staircase and front door until they reached a closed door. Toriel opened it and gestured for her to walk in. Flowey leaned into the room as Frisk entered and looked around. It was a young children’s room, with two beds, a wardrobe, a shelf and a toy box.

_I wonder whose room this was? Obviously one of the beds belonged to Asriel but what about the other one?_

Frisk shrugged off her questions and put Flowey down on the closest bed before she turned to Toriel.

“Thank you for understanding Toriel.” She said.

“It’s not a problem. You to get some rest and in the morning you can get going.” Toriel left and shut the door.

Frisk turned back to Flowey and saw he was already sound asleep.

_He must have been worn out. From what he told me on the way here, this is the first time in years he’s left that room I found him in._

She walked over to the opposite bed and lay down.

_I wonder if I’ll really be able to convince the King to talk with me? And Toriel said that it’s the law to kill any human that is found. Not only that, if a monster is found helping a human it’s the law to kill them too! Can I protect Flowey? Will I really be able to convince them I’m nice? That I just want to leave without hurting anyone? I hope so. I don’t want to have to hurt anyone. Not ever…_

And with that she fell into an uneasy sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi peoples!  
> How have you all been? I hope you all had an amazing Easter and got heaps of chocolates! And if you don't celebrate Easter then I hope you had an amazing day!  
> Here's another chapter for you all. I hope you enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it. Poor children finally getting a break at mama Toriels house. But what will happen next? Hopefully nothing bad!  
> ~Cupcakezys~


	13. Nightmares

**Flames licked up the wall next to her. Everywhere around her there were people screaming. She watched as the flames devoured what, until a few minutes ago, had been her house. She stared, transfixed, as the flames ate away at all the pictures on the kitchen wall, all the toys in her room and the curtains hanging on the other side of the window. There was a loud crash at the end of the little ally she was hiding in and she jumped and jerked back as she looked for what had made the sudden noise.**

**She choked back a scream when she saw the man dressed completely in black standing there, a giant gun in his hands. She clamped her hands over her mouth and didn’t move. She was mostly hidden behind some bins but if he started to investigate there was no way he wouldn’t see her. She held her breath as he started walking down the ally and squeezed her eyes shut as he got closer. She waited to be dragged out but nothing happened. She opened her eyes and saw the man had disappeared. She breathed a sigh of relief and peeked around the bin until she could see the street.**

**People were on the street screaming and crying. Men dressed in all black walked from house to house, some throwing fire at the houses and some dragging people onto the street. All of them had guns. She watched as one man was dragged from his burning house. She knew him. He was Mr Finny from down the street. He was really nice and gave her candy sometimes. When the man who was dragging him let him go Mr Finny punched him in the face. Several other people on the street started fighting. And then there was a loud bang and Mr Finny fell, a bullet hole in the back of his head. There were more bangs and people started screaming and crying louder. She screamed too.**

Frisk woke up suddenly, crying.

“Hey hey hey. Shhhhh, Frisk it’s alright. It was only a nightmare.” Flowey whispered.

He had somehow gotten over to her bed and was stroking her hair to calm her down. Frisk pulled her knees up and cried harder. The whole time Flowey stroked her hair and comforted her. After a while she calmed down and stopped crying.

“Thanks.” She sniffed. “I’m okay now.”

“Do you wanna talk about it?” He asked, sitting back to give her room.

“No it’s okay. Just a bad dream.” She said quietly.

“Alright.”

There was silence for a while and then they both looked over to the door as it opened. Toriel stood there, taking up the whole doorway.

“What’s happening in here? I heard a scream and then crying.”

“I had a nightmare, but everything’s fine now.” Frisk said, smiling. “I’m sorry if I woke you.”

“I was awake. Since you’re both up as well I could give you the rest of the pie for breakfast.” She said.

Frisk and Flowey looked at each other.

“Yes please!” They said together.

Flowey moved to sit on her shoulder as she got up. She walked back out to the lounge room and over to the table. They both sat back in the same chairs they had sat in before and Flowey grew vine arms again.

“Could you grow legs too?” She asked

“Yeah probably.” He said, testing his arms out.

“Then why do I have to carry you around everywhere!” she exclaimed.

“I could move around underground anyway. I just... Feel more comfortable with you close.” He looked away.

“Oh. Well it’s fine. You don’t weigh that much anyway.” Frisk mumbled.

“Here you go children.” Toriel came in and put a slice of pie in front of each of them.

“Thank you.” They said and started eating.

Once they had finished they washed up and went to talk to Toriel.

“We’re ready to go Toriel.” She said.

Toriel nodded and got up from where she was sitting. She motioned for them to follow her and walked to the stairs.

“Down there is the exit to the Ruins. Once you go through you will be in the Underground proper, where most of the monsters live now.” She looked at Frisk and then began walking down. “There are many monsters in the Underground, and all of them will try to kill you. You understand this?”

“Yes.” Frisk nodded.

They reached the bottom of the stairs and entered a dark corridor.

“Very well.”

Toriel began walking, saying nothing more. Frisk took a deep breath and followed, Flowey sitting on her head again. They walked in silence for a while, the long hallway seeming to stretch on forever, until they finally reached a giant door.

“This is the door to the Underground.” Toriel told her.

“It’s huge!” Frisk exclaimed.

Frisk walked up to the door, which was so big that if Toriel was twice her height she still wouldn’t come close to hitting her head. She ran her hands along the purple wood and gave it a little push. It didn’t budge, not that she had expected it to. The door was way too heavy for her to ever be able to open it.

“It can only be opened with magic.” Toriel told her.

She turned to face her. “Can you open it?”

“Of course.”

Frisk grinned and stepped back so she wouldn’t get hit by it as it opened. She waited, but nothing happened and she glanced up at Toriel in confusion.

“You will not survive if you go through that door. The other monsters will kill you both. Then they will use your soul to escape and destroy everything aboveground. Stay here with me. I can make sure no harm comes to you.” Toriel said.

Frisk shook her head. “I can’t. We’ll be fine Toriel. I’ll convince the other-”

“YOU WON’T BE ABLE TO!” Toriel interrupted, causing Frisk and Flowey to jump. “YOU WILL DIE GIRL. GET THAT THROUGH YOUR NIAVE HEAD!”

“T-Toriel I-I know-”

“YOU KNOW NOTHING. I KNOW EVERYTHING. YOU SHOULD LISTEN TO ME!”

Frisk stumbled back from the raging monster. She was terrified, and she could hear Flowey letting out small whimpers every time Toriel yelled.

Toriel saw this and smiled darkly. “If you won’t listen to me then I’ll make you. I’ll make it so you won’t ever be able to leave.”

Dread filled Frisk as everything turned grey and her soul started glowing in front of her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone!  
> I hope you all liked the chapter. Poor Frisk seems to have had quite a big nightmare, and now she’s up against Toriel! Please comment if there’s anything you want to say about the chapter.   
> Thank you all for reading, I hope you have a great day.   
> ~CupCakezys~


	14. To Calm a Flame

Frisk was finding it hard to breathe. Her legs were shaking from exhaustion and her vision was starting to get blurry. She had no idea how long she had been dodging Toriels attacks, but it felt like an eternity. Her fireballs seemed to be never ending, and no amount of pleading had convinced her to stop.

Frisk gritted her teeth as another round of fire was hurled at her. She slid left, barely managing to dodge. Another fire ball appeared out of nowhere and clipped the bottom of her soul, causing her legs to collapse. She hit the ground hard, pain clouding her vision completely. For a moment all she could do was lay there as her legs burned, then turned numb.

_I don’t think I can keep dodging anymore. Scratch that, I don’t think I can stand anymore._

“Frisk! Frisk get up! Hey!” the voice seemed urgent, but to Frisk it sounded like it was a thousand miles away.

She concentrated on her breathing and her vision slowly came back. Flowey sat in front of her, concern and panic written all over his face. Frisk smiled weakly at him and he gave her a hopeful smile back. Behind him Frisk could see their HP glowing next to each other. Frisk had been hiding Flowey behind her back, but his HP was still down to 8. Hers was at 3.

_A couple more hits and I’ll… I’ll…_

“So are you finally admitting defeat girl?” Toriels voice shocked her out of her thoughts.

Flowey whirled around to face his mother, standing protectively in front of her. He was shaking from both fear and exhaustion, but he stood firm.

“What’s this?” Toriel asked, raising an eyebrow.

“I-I won’t let you hurt Frisk a-anymore!” He stuttered.

“Oh really? And what are you going to do?” Toriel drawled.

For a second nothing happened, then white petals appeared around him. Vines erupted from the ground and gently wrapped around Frisk, lifting her away from the battle.

“Wha-? Flowey what are you doing?” She called weakly.

“Don’t w-worry Frisk! I-I got this!” He replied.

The flower petals that were surrounding him attacked Toriel, moving so fast they were almost impossible to see. For the first time Frisk saw Toriels HP as it dropped from 56 to 54.

“PATHETIC!” She roared as she hurled fireballs at Flowey.

“FLowey!” Frisk called in a panic, struggling to get out of the vines.

Flames covered the entire area where Flowey had been only moments before. The flames died down and the little golden flower was nowhere to be seen. Frisks body went slack in horror.

_No… he can’t… he can’t be…._

The fight ended and everything became colourful again. Tears welled up in her eyes as she stared at the place where she had last seen her friend. Toriel was staring too, a sad look in her eyes, but before Frisk could see she had replaced it with a look of triumph.

“See? This is what happens when you don’t listen to me girl. Now…” She stepped forward and reached out to grab her. “Come with me!”

“No!” Frisk yelled, finally struggling free of the vines.

She stumbled away from Toriel, trying to ignore the screaming pain that wracked her body. Just as she thought she was about to be caught she heard a startled yelp from behind her. She turned and saw Toriel hanging above her, vines wrapped around her torso. Frisk watched in amazement as the vines attached to the wall and stopped moving.

“WHAT IS THIS?!” Toriel yelled, struggling uselessly against the vines.

Frisk looked around desperately, searching for any sign of Flowey. Just as she was starting to lose hope she saw the little golden flower emerge from the ground. He shook dirt from his petals and looked up just in time to be smothered by Frisk.

“I-I th-thought you were…. I thought you h-had….” Frisk cried, tears running freely down her face.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you. I’m alright Frisk, I promise.” He murmured, wrapping vine arms around her.

“So you survived.” Toriel said.

Frisk stopped crying and turned to Toriel, though she didn’t let go of Flowey. Wiping her eyes she looked up at the giant monster.

_Is it just my imagination or does she sound relived?_

“Toriel-”

“You’re going to die out there.” She interrupted. “There’s no way you’ll survive. Some monster will kill you, and if you manage to make it to Asgore then he’ll show you no mercy. You’ll die, just like all the others. Just like my son.”

Frisk swallowed and held Flowey closer. “I won’t.”

Toriel scoffed and refused to meet her gaze. She looked defeated, her body slack and her head bowed.

“Really I won’t. I don’t know how things went in the past but this time it’ll be different. We’re going to make it to Asgore and convince him to help us, then together we’ll all figure out a way to break the barrier and reach the surface.” Frisk insisted.

Flowey stared at her in surprise. This was the first time he had heard anything about freeing all of Monsterkind. He wanted to protest but Toriel beat him to it.

“Free us? You are aware that would mean re-starting the war yes? That millions would die?” She said.

“I’ll make sure that doesn’t happen. I know it sounds crazy Toriel but I need you to trust me.” Frisk pleaded.

Toriel glared down at her. She thought for a long time, then sighed and gave her a small smile.

“Alright Frisk. I’ll trust you.” She said.

Frisks eyes lit up and she grinned at her before she winced as all the pain she had been ignoring hit her. Her entire body was screaming in pain, and she didn’t think there was an inch of her skin left un-burned. Flowey fussed over her, slipping out of her hands and looking her over.

“It’s alright Flowey. If you heal us both then we’ll be right to continue.” She said.

His face fell.

“I can’t.” He whispered. “Since I lost… I can’t.”

Frisk looked at him in shock, then quickly smiled. “Well…. that’s okay. I’m sure I’ll be fine. Perhaps we can go back and find Froggit and ask him for help.”

“I could help, if you’ll allow me to.” Toriel said.

The two looked up at her. Flowey was hesitant, but he already knew what Frisk was going to say.

“Yes please! That would help a lot.” She said.

Flowey lowered Toriel to the ground and retracted his vines. She slowly walked towards them, so as not to scare them. Frisk closed her eyes and after a brief second her soul was floating in front of her. Toriel bent down and focused on it. Green flames burst to life around her and she laughed as each one gently healed her. She watched as Flowey was healed and then picked him up and spun until she was so dizzy she fell.

“Thank you Toriel.” She said, still giggling and just a little dizzy.

“That’s quite alright Frisk. After all I am the one who-”

She was cut off as Frisk pulled her into a hug. For a moment Toriel did nothing, and then her arms came around her and hugged her tightly back. They stood there like that for a while before Toriel pulled back.

“You two be safe out there okay?” She asked, though it was more like a demand.

“We will.” Frisk answered anyway.

Toriel nodded and turned to the giant door. She muttered something Frisk couldn’t hear and it slowly swung open. A blast of freezing cold air whirled around them, causing Frisk to shiver. She wrapped her arms around herself as she walked through the door and gasped.

_I should have worn my warmer coat._

Spread out before her, as far as she could see, was a beautiful world of snow. There were bare trees everywhere and a snowy path leading to what looked like a bridge in the distance.

“Wow! This is amazing! Look at all the snow!” She laughed and kicked some into the air. “Wait how is there snow down here? And trees?”

Frisk stopped playing in the snow and turned back to Toriel, but all that was in front of her was the big wooden door, shut tight.

“Oh.”

“She shut the door as soon as we went through.” Flowey said as he moved to his place on her head. “It’s just us again.”

“Okay.” She turned and looked around. “But seriously, how is there snow here?”

“Magic. Come on, Snowdin’s this way.” Flowey said and pointed to the bridge she had seen before.

“Oh magic of course. Makes sense.” Frisk mumbled as she started walking towards the bridge.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone!  
> Here's the next chapter! Sorry for it being late, I got really busy with work and wasn't able to upload. Anyway it's here now and I hope you all enjoyed! As usual if there's anything you want to say please let me know in the comments.  
> Frisk and Flowey have made it to Snowdin now! What could possibly go wrong? Haha. Also if you guys have any head cannons for what the monsters personalities are like please let me know. I've seen a number of different ones out there and I'm not sure which ones I like best and want to use for this story.   
> Anyway I hope you all have a great day!  
> ~Cupcakezys~


	15. A Skele-encounter

“It’s so cold out here.” Frisk said as she shivered.

She could hear Floweys voice quiver as he spoke. “Hold on I have an idea. Stop walking for a moment.”

Frisk stopped and waited to see what he would do. She felt something crawling down her back and arms. She looked down and saw vines covering her whole body. They were light and really soft, and most importantly, extremely warm.

“Thank you Flowey! This is much better.” She said and started walking again. “But are you okay? I don’t want you to be cold while I’m warm.”

“Don’t worry about me I’m fine. The cold’s not so bad for me now.”

“Well okay then.” Frisk said.

As they crossed the bridge, Frisk could see what looked like a sentry station on the other side. She walked over to it, curious. Inside were bottles of mustard and a black hoodie with fluffy white bits around the hood. She was about to pick it up when she noticed Flowey was looking around like he expected someone to jump out ay him at any moment.

“What’s the matter?” She whispered.

“The skeleton brothers must have built this. No one else comes this far out.” He whispered back. “They are some of the meanest monsters in the Underground. Papyrus isn’t as bad as his older brother Sans, but this looks like one of Sans’ stations. If he finds us he’ll kill us instantly. We wouldn’t even stand a chance.”

“They can’t be that bad. I’m sure if we just talk to them, then-”

“No! Frisk we can’t let him see us! Or Papyrus either! Please promise me you won’t try to talk to either of them!” He begged.

The fear in his voice scared her enough to make her promise.

_These skeleton brothers must be really mean. Flowey’s terrified. I wonder if he’s met them or only heard about them?_

Suddenly Frisk heard two voices coming from the path ahead, and they sounded like they were slowly getting closer. She quickly went behind the sentry station and crouched down. It had a ledge that acted like a table, and she hid under it. Flowey had retracted his vines from around her and had curled up in a small ball around her hand. He was shaking, and Frisk didn’t think it was just from the cold anymore. She held him close and tried to quieten her breathing as the voices got close enough for her to understand.

“WILL YOU JUST HURRY THE FUCK UP! I'M IN NO MOOD TO WAIT AROUND SANS. I WANT TO RECALIBRATE MY TRAPS AS SOON AS POSSIBLE." A loud voice exclaimed.

“yeah, right. of course boss, I’m sorry.” A lower voice mumbled.

“IF YOU'RE SO SORRY THEN MOVE YOUR USELESS SELF SO WE CAN GO!"

Frisk heard the quieter voice mumble sorry over and over again as his footsteps got closer.

_Oh god he’s coming over here. He’s going to see me! I’ll have to run. Flowey said if he saw us we wouldn’t stand a chance. Okay. Run in three.... two..._

Suddenly vines pulled her under the table even more and slowly began covering her. In less than three seconds she was completely covered in vines and darkness. She looked down at Flowey and he gave her a panicked smile. She hugged him in silent thanks, and looked up through a hole in the mass of greenery.

A foot came into view and Frisk held her breath. The foot was in a red sneaker, with yellow socks going up. Where the socks ended, Frisk could see white bone. She peeked further up and got a good look at the skeleton. He couldn’t have been that tall, although he looked huge from this angle. His shorts were black with a yellow stripe going up each leg. He had a plain red T-shirt on under the hoodie that Frisk had seen before.

 _Oh my god!_ Frisk had to bite her lip to keep from screaming out.

His teeth were all white and pointed, except for one, which was gold. And his eyes. They were pure black, except for two white dots. His eyes scared Frisk more than anything else ever had. She was sure that if she wasn’t already still those eyes would have left her paralyzed. The other voice suddenly called out, almost causing her to scream.

“DID YOU FIND IT?"

“yeah i got it boss.” The skeleton replied as he walked away.

“THEN LET'S GO. I DON'T HAVE THE TIME TO BE WAITING AROUND FOR YOU."

The voices slowly faded away to nothing. Frisk stayed where she was long after the voices had disappeared, and Flowey didn’t seem to want to move either. Finally she slowly crawled out from under the sentry stations table and peeked her head out, expecting the skeletons to be there waiting for her.

There was nothing there but snow dancing through the air. Frisk breathed a sigh of relief and stood up fully. Flowey had gotten rid of the vines that had been hiding them and now Frisk was once again cold. She didn’t really care though. She turned and sat on the chair. Flowey looked up at her.

“Now do you see why I said you wouldn’t be able to convince them?” He asked.

Frisk could only nod in response. _I don’t have a chance against them. They’ll kill me for sure._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey Peoples!  
> Here's the next chapter for you all. Finally the Skele-Bros are here! Hope you guys enjoyed. If you have anything to say about the story and what you think is going to happen, or if you just have something you want to say let me know in the comments.  
> P. s: Yes, there will be some more swearing in this later on just to let you all know.  
> ~Cupcakezys~


	16. Snowdin

Frisk wasn’t sure how long she sat in the sentry station. Snow was falling lightly around them and she could feel Flowey shaking against her. Frisk just felt numb, both from a lingering fear and the cold.

“What did the skeleton mean when he said traps?” Frisk asked suddenly, and immediately regrated it.

_Ow._ She winced at the sound of her own voice.

It was raspy from the cold and sounded terrible, but Flowey understood. “Prob-obly j-just more pu-zzles.”

Frisk frowned as he curled up on himself, his entire body shivering. She covered him with her hands and held him close to her chest in an attempt to help warm him up. He pushed as close to her as he could, desperate for more heat and Frisks concerns grew.

_I know he said he’d be fine but he doesn’t look fine at all! I have to find us some place warm…_

She slowly got up and started walking down the path the skeleton brothers had gone. The snow had started falling faster while they were sitting down, and it had become almost impossible to see too far in any direction.

_I hope whatever these traps are they’re easy to see._

As it turns out they were not easy to see, not even in the slightest. Frisk wasn’t even aware she had come across one until she ran head first into it and it shocked her. She had been trudging through the snow, her head down against the cold, when all of a sudden there was a sharp pain all through her body. She cried out and jerked backwards falling onto the ground with a dull thump.

“Frisk! Are you alright?” Flowey asked as she rubbed her head.

“Yeah I’m fine. It scared me more than i hurt me.” She murmured, standing. “It’s like there’s an invisible wall there or something.”

Gingerly Frisk walked back to where she had been standing before she got shocked. She couldn’t see anything there, even though there had to be something.

“Stand back. I have an idea.” Flowey said.

Frisk took a couple of steps back and Flowey sat up in her arms. He concentrated for a moment and then vines burst from the frozen ground in front of them. Frisk gasped as they grew around invisible walls, creating a giant green maze. Flowey relaxed and Frisk warily navigated her way through the now obvious maze.

They continued on like this for hours, occasionally having to stop to try and figure a puzzle out in the fast falling snow. It was quickly getting almost impossible to see anything at all. A couple of times Frisk almost slid over the edge of a large drop because of some terrible ice puzzle, but Flowey used his vines to help them back up. They passed a few more sentry stations, these ones filled with some sort of dog treats, but they were all empty.

_Guess no one wants to be out in this snow._ She shivered.

At one point Frisk thought she saw a figure in the distance and she called out to them before even realising what she was doing. She tensed as the figure froze, then disappeared. When she got to where they had been standing she saw a couple of gold coins in the snow. She looked around but couldn’t see anyone, so she pocketed the money.

Frisk felt ready to collapse from exhaustion when she saw a faint glow ahead of her. Hope rose in her chest and she quickened her pace. Five minutes later she was standing in front of a sign that had graffiti painted all over it. She was barely able to make out the work ‘Snowdin’ underneath it all. She started heading for the closest light when she stopped.

_I shouldn’t just stroll into a monster filled town. They’d recognise and kill me in an instant. I need some sort of disguise…_

Frisk desperately looked around for anything to use but the falling snow made it impossible. She huffed in frustration and looked longingly at the lights.

_Maybe I could just go in anyway? If I’m careful and keep my head down then maybe no one will notice us and we can just sit in the warm for a while._

Flowey shifted in her hands, startling her from her thoughts.

“You can’t just walk in there. They’ll tear you to shreds.” His voice was barely above a whisper.

“We don’t have any other choice!” Her own voice was shaky and it hurt when she tried to speak loudly. “If we stay out here we’ll freeze.”

“If I wrap you up in vines again then you’ll be fine and-”

“That’s it!” Frisk interrupted. “We could use your vines as a disguise. Do you know if any monsters look like a human covered in vines?”

The idea seemed silly once Frisk spoke it allowed but it was all she could think of. She was about to tell him not to worry about it when her breath caught in her throat and she fell into a coughing fit. Flowey worriedly gazed at her and once it passed he nodded.

“It could work. There are some earth elementals out there that look almost exactly like you described. As long as no one looked too closely you could pass for one.”

Frisk grinned, but didn’t dare speak in case she started coughing again.

“Just don’t move. It won’t work if I don’t get it perfect.”

Frisk held still as she felt vines slowly cover her entire body as Flowey worked.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys!  
> Sorry for being late!! And sorry for it being such a crappy chapter. :/  
> I've been pretty busy recently because of work and family vacation stuff. And when I do get time to work on this I find it really hard for the ideas to flow like they used to. Hope you all enjoyed anyway! Next chapter will be better I swear! And it will also be on time.   
> Thank you all for reading. If you have anything to say put it in the comments, it really helps me when I know how people feel about my work. :) I hope you all have a fantastic day you amazing people.  
> ~Cupcakezys~


	17. Grillbys

Ten minutes later Frisk was warmer than she had been in hours. Vines covered her entire body apart from her face and little yellow flowers bloomed in her hair.

_I’m not sure what I look like exactly, but Flowey seems content, so I guess he did a good job. I hope it’s convincing enough._

“Just remember to act like a monster and no one should suspect a thing.” Flowey told her.

Frisk nodded and Flowey sat behind her left ear so he could blend in with the other flowers in her hair. Frisk took a deep breath and walked towards the closest light. Once she got close enough to see what was in the windows she was surprised to see the first house was a shop. Quickly she pushed open the door and rushed inside.

Frisk couldn’t help but sigh of happiness as the warmth of the house enveloped her. She heard Flowey groan quietly above her. Once the two had warmed up and Frisks hands had stopped shaking she walked further into the store.

Sweets of all kinds lined the shelves. Some Frisk recognised and some she had never seen before. She was just reaching up to grab a bottle so she could read the label when a voice startled her so much she almost jumped through the ceiling.

“What do you think you’re doing punk?” A cold voice called out.

Frisk whirled around. A purple bunny monster was standing behind a counter that she hadn’t seen before. They were wearing a black sun hat even though they were indoors and a black top with a spiked choker around their neck. Frisk could only stare at them for a moment, but then she felt vines tighten around her arm and she remembered to breath.

The shopkeeper raised their eyebrows. “Are you buying anything or not? Because I don’t run an inn, that’s next door. If you aren’t buying then get out!”

Frisk grabbed two sweets off of the nearest shelf without looking and placed them on the counter. The shopkeeper glared at her as they checked the price.

_Act like a monster._

Frisk crossed her arms did her best to glare back at the monster. “How much?”

“50G. You got that much punk?” They asked.

Frisk quickly pulled the money she had found before out of her pocket and placed it on the counter. Slowly the shopkeeper counted out her money. Frisk crossed her fingers.

_Please be enough, please be enough, please be enough!_

Something like shock passed over the shopkeepers face. They shook whatever it was off and nodded as they placed the sweets and a couple of coins back on the counter.

“You had extra. Next time you might want to count your money out first kid. Other monsters would just keep the extra for themselves.” They told her.

Frisk smiled. “Thank you.”

Confusion flickered across their face before they glared. “Whatever. Get out of my shop!”

Frisk quickly gathered her things and turned to leave. The walk to the door felt like an eternity, the shopkeepers glare made her want to run but the warmth of the shop caused her feet to drag with every step. Finally she reached the door and stepped back into the snow storm.

The cold cut through her like a knife, worse than before she had gone into the shop. She had gotten used to the heat, and the sudden cold was almost too much for her to bear. She could feel Flowey already shaking, and he nestled further into her hair.

 _The shop lady said that there was an inn next door._ Frisk remembered.

She headed to the nearby house, quickening her pace with the promise of a warm bed and maybe a shower. Something shining caught her eye through the falling snow and she couldn’t help but wonder closer to see what it was. Flowey protested, asking her what she was doing, but she ignored him.

It was a glowing golden star.

_I saw these in the Ruins too. I wonder what they are?_

Absently she placed her hand on it, and her fingers tingled with warmth. She gasped and removed her hand. She blinked back to reality and heard Flowey talking to her.

“What are you doing? Frisk? We gotta get inside!” He was yelling uncomfortably close to her ear and Frisk winced.

“Flowey? Don’t you see it?” She asked.

“See what? There’s nothing there.”

“But it’s right there!” She looked at the glowing star again.

“I still don’t see anything. Maybe the snow’s playing tricks on you or something.”

Frisk was about to point out that a trick couldn’t be warm, but she fell into a coughing fit. Once it had cleared up and she assured Flowey she was fine she rubbed at her throat worriedly.

_I hope I’m not getting sick. We better get inside quickly before it gets worse._

Frisk pushed through the snow to the inn’s door. Once again she let out a sigh at the heat that surrounded her. She noticed another rabbit monster behind a counter at the other end of the room. This monster had blond fur and wore a red and gold dress. They were smiling at her as she made her way towards them.

_It’s actually kinda creepy._

Frisk shook off her unease and gave the innkeeper a small smile. “Hello.”

“Hello little child! What brings you here tonight? Looking for a place to get out of the snow?” Their voice was bright and happy, almost unnaturally so.

Frisk nodded. “Just for tonight.”

“Of course! One night is 80G.” They held out their paw.

A feeling of dead fell over Frisk. _I don’t have that much. At least, I don’t think I do._

She pulled out the remaining coins she had and put them in the innkeepers paw. They happily started counting them and then froze. A dark look appeared in their eyes.

“What’s this?” Their voice was much quieter than before. All the happiness had been replaced with a cold fury. “Is this some kind of scam? THIS IS NOWHERE NEAR ENOUGH!”

The innkeeper tossed Frisks coins at her and continued yelling at her as she scooped them up and ran out the door. She didn’t even really notice the cold until the inn was a distant light in the snow, and even then Frisk couldn’t shake the fear chasing her. She vowed not to get tricked by a fake smile again.

_That could have ended badly. I need to be more cautious from now on._

Frisk was starting to lose hope. The snow was getting colder by the minute and she doubted anyone was going to let them stay the night. Even worse, her throat was starting to hurt even more. Flowey mumbled something she couldn’t hear.

“What was that?” She asked.

“I know one last place we can try.” He whispered.

He used his vines to guide her to a nearby house. It was larger than the shop and the inn had been, and ad a sign above the door. She could barely make out the word ‘Grillbys’ in the snow. She hesitated at the door, thinking back to the screaming rabbits, but Flowey encouraged her to open the door.

The first thing that hit her was the heat. It was even warmer than the other houses she had been in. It seeped into her bones and relaxed her frozen muscles. The second thing that hit her was the noise. She looked around and started to panic when she noticed the amount of monsters in the room. As Frisk looked around she realised the place was a bar. A group of dogs took up half of the room, and the other half had two other monsters in different booths.

She heard yelling and quickly slid into a booth next to the door. A drunk rabbit was on the other side, but she had passed out. She looked towards the yelling and gasped. A giant man stood behind the bar, yelling at a pair of monsters. As if that wasn’t scary enough, the giant was made entirely of blue fire.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys.  
> Look I'm on time! And this chapter is a little longer than usual. :)  
> Anyway, I hope you all enjoyed this chapter. I'm getting excited! Finally Frisk is going to meet Grillby. The next chapter is one I've been looking forward to for a while.  
> If you see any mistakes or have anything you would like to say, good or bad, please let me know. Also any puns you know of, tell me please. I'm hopeless at thinking of any and would very much appreciate any help.  
> Also any songs that you guy like. I'm writing another story called Hope, and I need songs for it. It's based around Zarla's Undertale Handplates AU and you can read it and comment any songs or puns here: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6622465  
> Thanks for reading guys, I hope you all have a good day/night.  
> ~Cupcakezys~


	18. Fight! Fight! Fight!

Frisk stared wide-eyed at the glowing blue fire monster behind the bar. His loud voice echoed around the room as he yelled at two drunk monsters. No one else in the bar seemed to care, or even notice as the drunk monsters threw down some money and stumbled out the door. Frisk looked down as they passed, doing her best to be as unnoticeable as possible. Luckily they were too drunk to do much more than mumble threats as they left.

The fire monster had calmed a little once they had gone, though he still seemed angry as he poured some drinks and carried them to a table surrounded by dogs in armour.

Frisk watched as two of them started fighting and growls filled the room. One was incredibly big, with giant shiny armour, and the other was smaller with some sort of dog treat in his mouth. They rolled around the bar and Frisk gasped as the big one was pushed out of his armour and rolled to a stop near her booth. He quickly got to his feet and Frisk tried, and failed, to process what she was seeing. The big dog in armour turned out to be smaller than her, and probably only came up to her knees.

She looked away as the fight started turning ugly and saw two other dogs and the fire monster placing bets, presumably on who would win.

There was a high pitched yelp and Frisks gaze returned to the two fighting dogs. Surprisingly the smaller dog was standing over his opponent in victory. The other dog was curled up on the ground, with several gashes that weren’t bleeding covering his body. The small dog growled, which caused the loser to whimper and flinch away. Happy, the winner jumped back in his armour and sat back at his table, drink in paw.

The two betting dogs, which Frisk assumed were a couple from the way they acted, huffed happily and one held out their paw. The fire monster grumpily tossed some coins at them, which they scrambled to pick up, before he walked back to behind the bar.

Frisk sighed as her stomach rumbled. _It’s strange but I don’t see anyone eating anything. Everyone just seems to be determined to get as drunk as possible. At least I have those snacks from that shop._

Frisk brought her knees up and huddled in the very corner of her booth where she was least likely to be spotted. She pulled out her now cold treats and opened the packaging off one before offering it to Flowey. He moved to her lap and started eating. She opened her own and took a bite.

_It’s good, mostly just cinnamon, and it would definitely been better warm. Oh well. Even cold it tastes good._

“So far so good. We haven’t been thrown out yet.” Frisk whispered once she had finished.

“That’s mostly ‘cause no one has noticed us yet.” Flowey whispered back. “Hopefully it stays that way, at least until closing time.”

Frisk nodded and peeked around the room. It had gone mostly quiet, the dogs all playing an arm wrestling game on their side of the room and the loud bartender was washing dishes behind the counter.

_I wonder if it’s a good idea for the fire monster to be so close to water? And what about the snow? Wouldn’t it be better for him to live somewhere else?_

Her vision swam as exhaustion finally caught up with her and she led down on the long chair.

_Just a quick nap. Then we have to keep moving._

_…_

_These seats are really uncomfortable._

*****

Flowey did his best to watch over Frisk as she slept. He really did. For the first five minutes he was alert, watching the dogs slowly get so drunk they couldn’t stand straight. The bunny across from them woke up, gave them a curious glance and then stumbled over to the bar where she started clumsily flirting with the bartender. He gave her an indifferent look and took some coins from her paw before literally throwing her out the door.

Flowey tensed as the fire monster looked their way, and did his best to act like a normal flower. Fear made him shake slightly, and he hoped the monster didn’t notice. Flowey was just about to wake Frisk and tell her to run when the monster turned away. He breathed a sigh of relief.

For the next half hour he kept watch, however he was becoming tired himself. Using his magic so much combined with the comfortable warmth of the bar had sapped most of his will to stay awake. He caught himself as he started nodding off and quickly scanned the room for the millionth time, however nothing had changed.

He barely even noticed when he closed his eyes and drifted into sleep.

*****

**Frisk was curled into as small a ball as she could get, her head on her knees and her hands covering her ears. It did nothing to drown out the screaming. It was a never ending, high pitched squeal that echoed around her brain again and again.**

**What she had seen couldn’t have been real. There was no way. Not three hours ago she was eating cookies Mr Finny had baked especially for her. But she couldn’t get what she had seen out of her head. The man in black, the gun, the bang and then the blood, oh the blood it was everywhere and she was drowning in it and she couldn’t breath-**

**Arms grabbed her and she screamed, lashing out and punching and kicking with all her might. Her attacker let out a groan and Frisk stopped short.**

**“Sis?” Through her tears she could make out the blurred form of her older sister.**

**“Yeah it’s me.” Her sister lent down and pulled her into a hug, and in two seconds her top was sopping wet with tears. “It’s alright kiddo, I’m here now. You don’t have to worry.”**

**They sat that way for what seemed like an eternity, but Frisk knew it was only a few seconds before her sister pulled back and smiled at her.**

**“We gotta get outta here, and we gotta do it now before anyone sees us. Do you understand Frisk?”**

**Frisk nodded. Her sister wiped the tears from her eyes and grabbed her hand. She pulled her away from the town and towards the forest. Everything blurred and suddenly Frisk was standing before the forest, the mountain towering over her. No one was surpassed to go near this place. She turned back to her home and cried out.**

**Everything was in flames. Not a single building in the small town had been spared. The light of the burning buildings captivated her in a beautiful, terrible way and she heard someone sobbing.**

**It took her a moment to realise she was she one crying.**

**Hands pulled at her. “C’mon kiddo, we gotta keep moving.”**

**She let herself be pulled away, clumsily stumbling over the uneven ground. The forest was filled with an uneasy silence. Frisk jumped as a loud cry echoed around them, followed by several gunshots.**

**“RUN!” Her sister yelled.**

*****

Frisk woke up paralysed. The memories replayed over and over in her head and she did her best to ignore them and calm down. Flowey had fallen asleep on her shoulder and she tried not to wake him as she sat up. It was then that she realised something was wrong. It was far too quiet. As she looked around she noticed that everyone was gone, except for the fire monster, who was sitting on a stool and facing away from her.

Frisk tensed and quietly got out of the booth. She had almost made it to the door when the floor creaked underneath her. Immediately a knife flew past her face and lodged itself in the door. She turned to find the fire monster watching her.

“I was wondering when you would wake up.” He said.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone!  
> I hope you all enjoyed this chapter. And I hope you're enjoying this fic in general. This has become my favorite chapter so far, but I'm pretty sure the next chapter will change that. >.


	19. Confusing Emotions

_Oh god what do I do?_

Frisk stared at the fire monster across the room. He was sitting casually on a stool, smiling at her. The smile scared her, what with it being nothing but a jagged line across his face. It also didn’t help that he was holding another knife in his hand. She couldn’t seem to stop her hands from shaking. His smile darkened when he noticed her fear.

“Why don’t you come take a seat kid?” It was more a command than a request.

Frisk swallowed her fear and slowly approached him. She had debated running, but immediately thought better of it. She wouldn’t make it out the door before he burnt her to ashes. His gaze burned into her as she carefully climbed onto the stool next to him. He faced her and started flipping the knife in his hand. Frisk watched as it flew up into the air and then fell back into his palm. Flowey squeaked but the monster didn’t seem to notice.

“Where are your parents kid? You shouldn’t be so far away from them or someone might attack you, and it’d be such a shame for someone so young to be dusted.” Grillby said.

Despite his words his voice was completely devoid of concern, his lips pulled up in a jagged smirk. Frisk couldn’t take her eyes off of the knife.

Her mouth was completely dry as she answered truthfully; “I don’t have any parents. They died when I was little.”

“Oh.”

The knife stopped in his hand and he looked at her with what she thought was sympathy, though she wasn’t sure. Whatever it was, it was gone the next second, and Frisk was left wondering if it had ever even been there.

“Well, what are you doing here? You running from someone?” He asked bluntly.

“Oh! Umm no I… er… I’m just…” Frisk stumbled over the words, her mind going blank when she tried to think of a believable lie.

“Didn’t like the city?”

Frisk quickly nodded at his words. _Sure lets go with that._

The fire monster nodded. “Not many do. You can’t walk down the street without someone trying to dust you.”

Silence filled the room. Neither of them seemed to know what to say next.

_Well this isn’t so bad. He seems nice enough. Then again, so did the innkeeper and that turned out terribly._

Frisk glanced over at the fire monster. He was staring intently at his knife, almost as if he was waiting for it to tell him the worlds secrets. Hesitantly Frisk cleared her throat. He startled and glared at her.

Frisk shrunk back and spoke in a small voice. “My name’s Frisk. What’s yours Mr?”

For a long moment he simply stared at her. Frisk shifted uncomfortably under his glare and was about to say ‘sorry, never mind’ when finally he spoke.

“Grillby.” He said gruffly.

Frisk smiled at him. “Nice to meet you Mr Grillby.”

Grillby looked at her like she was an alien. _Shoot, a monster wouldn’t say that, what was I thinking?_

“Likewise.” He said tensely, confusion written all over his face.

Silence. Frisk could feel Floweys fear radiating off of him. She casually brought her hand up to her face to brush a strand of flower covered hair behind her ear, quickly giving him a comforting pat.

Frisk jumped as a loud bang echoed around the room. Grillby had slammed a fist on the table as he stood up.

“Wait here and don’t move.” He demanded, then as an afterthought said; “I’ll be right back.”

Frisk watched as he disappeared through a door behind the bar, slamming it shut behind him. As soon as Grillby was out of sight Flowey moved down to sit on the bar table.

“Well that went… better than I expected.” Frisk said.

“I didn’t know he was Grillby!” Flowey hissed.

Frisk looked at him in confusion. “You know him?”

“Everyone does! Listen, Frisk we can’t let him find out you’re human okay? No matter what! Even if he seems okay now, if he finds out sparing you won’t even cross his mind.” He insisted.

“Why not?” Frisk asked.

_It’s not like I was planning on telling him or anything, but why’s Flowey so insistent all of a sudden?_

“Because he was the strongest elemental during the war, and the amount of people he killed, human or monster, was unbelievable.”

~~~~~

Grillby slammed the door shut behind him and leaned against it. He put his head in his hands and let out a long sigh.

_What is this kid doing to me?_

Emotions he had thought were dead and buried long ago were making a sudden appearance, and Grillby was powerless to stop them. Sympathy, understanding, shock and something he couldn’t describe swirled around his core.

He knew what it was like to live without any parents. He never had any himself, being summoned solely for the purpose of killing humans in the war. His summoner, whom one might call his parent, only ever called for him when she needed him to kill something. Or to dust someone, it was all the same to him.

He grunted and started moving around his kitchen. He gathered ingredients and chucked them in a bowl carelessly as other memories surfaced.

After they were all locked underground he was forgotten, no longer needed to fight and therefor useless. At least he wasn’t dismissed like most of the other elementals. He knew not many of his kin were kept around long after the barrier was put up, and he was lucky his reputation as a warrior kept most of the monsters from daring to question his continued existence. The ones who had he had taken care of.

He had lived on his own, dusting monsters whenever they dared challenge him. He had lived in the city for a while, however after the Queen disappeared he had decided to move. Snowdin was the furthest from New Home so that was where he moved, despite the dangers.

Grillby struggled as the oven hotplates refused to turn on. Frustrated, he threw a couple of fireballs at the stupid thing. The fire caught and caused the whole thing to almost blow up before he got it under control. Now there was a nice fire going he could start cooking. Barely even paying attention to what he was doing he half closed his eyes as more memories invaded his head.

It had taken a while, but eventually he became known as the strongest monster in Snowdin, and no one bothered him. Even the royal guard dogs went running when they heard him coming. He was content in the fact that he was the strongest and everyone feared him because of it.

Well, that was before the skeleton brothers showed up. The smaller one, Sans, was pretty much useless. He was a coward, and was only good at running away. Still, he was a good customer, and he loved to rant to Grillby. Whether it was about his brother or something Grillby couldn’t even begin to understand, it was always fun to listen to none the less.

And then there was his brother. The Great and Terrible Papyrus he like to call himself. Grillby called him an arrogant brat. He had shown up with his brother one snowy day and promptly ordered Grillby to battle him. He had smirked and told the shithead to go home to his mother before he sent him back in a jar. Then somehow he was buried to his waist in melting snow, the stunned villagers staring at him.

Everyone had instantly started worshipping the skeleton brat, even going so far as to suggest he should replace the current Captain of the Royal Guard. Of course Undyne wasn’t too happy about it but when Papyrus actually managed to beat her there was nothing she could do. She stepped down without much fuss, though Grillby knew she was already planning her revenge.

And now here he was, no longer top dog and no longer respected. No one dared fight him still, though they did mock him any chance they could get.

_And honestly,_ he thought _, I’m fine with that. I’m so tired of fighting everyone I meet._

Which brought him back to the thing that had been bugging him. Why was the child in his bar – Frisk did she say her name was? – so kind? Never before had he met someone like her. She was being polite, something he had only ever heard of, and she was gentle. Not once had she tried to fight him, or exploit any of his weaknesses.

And she had shown many of her own weaknesses. She had fallen asleep in a bar filled with monsters, quietly obeyed him when he told her to sit down and she hadn’t even known his name. He had thought everyone in the Underground knew his name. Above all that, she was obviously an earth elemental. The flowers and vines covering her was a dead giveaway. He could dust her in a second, any time he wanted, with just a simple touch.

He shook his head and focused on the present. _It doesn’t make any sense. Maybe it’s all an act? She could be waiting for the perfect moment to strike…_

The thought faded before it even had time to fully form. Something about the girl told him the kindness she was showing was genuine. The strange certainty he had on the matter left him even more confused than before. With a frustrated grunt he put the food he had been cooking onto two plates and walked back into his bar.

~~~~~

Frisk jumped as the door slammed open and Grillby stepped back into the room. She quickly grabbed Flowey and put him back in her been.

An amazing smell reached her as the door swung shut behind Grillby and she saw he was carrying two plates. Both were overflowing with hot chips, and Frisks mouth started watering as one of the plates were set down in front of her. She was about to dig in when she realised maybe that wasn’t a good idea.

_Monsters don’t just give food to other people do they?_

The way he looked at her was unnerving. His gaze was unreadable, but Frisk got the feeling he was analysing her every move. She tried not to let him see how nervous and afraid she was.

“What’s the catch?” She asked.

~~~~~

Grillby blinked at Frisks sudden question. He had gotten distracted by how pretty the flowers in her hair were.

“It’s alright kid. It’s on the house.” Grillby heard himself say.

Frisk looked from the chips to the fire monster and grinned. “Really?”

The question was small and unbelieving, and Grillby nodded.

Her eyes lit up. “Thank you so much!”

The thanks surprised him almost as much as what he had said.

_Giving away food?_ He scowled. _Since when have I gotten so soft?_

Still he had to admit there was something satisfying about the warm smiles the child kept sending his way as she ate. Grillby felt the emotion he couldn’t describe grow as he ate his plate of chips.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys!   
> It feels like ages since I’ve updated this! Probably because I haven’t really been able to write that much lately. It seems that even when I do get the chance to sit down and write I have no motivation to actually type anything. o(╥﹏╥)o  
> But anyway! This chapter was surprisingly easy to write once I got into it, especially Grillbys past (which is why this chapter's so long!). The idea of elementals being summoned was from One Day T[he]y Just... written by the amazing EllenofX. I hope you don’t mind that I used the idea here, I just really liked it and sorta made it my cannon idea for Grillbys origins. If you haven’t read her stuff go check it out, I promise you won’t be disappointed!  
> Frisk and Flowey have been amazingly lucky so far huh? Most of the monsters haven’t given them any trouble. I wonder if they’ll continue to be that lucky? Hmmm? Aw, who am I kidding? I already know! ★~(◠‿◕✿)  
> All that having been said, I hope you all enjoyed this chapter and this story as a whole. All comments are welcome, if you wish to leave one I will respond to it ASAP. Wherever you are I hope you’re having a good time! (✿◠‿◠)  
> ~Cupcakezys~  
> PS- Aren’t the faces adorable? Ｏ(≧▽≦)Ｏ  
> PPS- The little ~~~~~ are character point of view changes in case you couldn't tell! I liked writing from another's POV, let me know if you guys liked it, kay? If you don't think it fits I'll stop doing it (mostly). M'kay, everyone have a good day/night alright? I love you all, thanks for reading this!


	20. Before the Storm Breaks

Frisk leaned back on her stool. Her stomach was warm and felt ready to burst from all the chips she had eaten. Despite being hungry beforehand, once she took a bite she found she didn’t feel like eating anymore. However it would have been rude not to finish, especially since Grillby had made them just for her, so she ate and did her best to ignore the sick feeling in the back of her throat. Whenever Grillby wasn’t silently watching her she quickly gave Flowey some food, but after a couple of bites he refused to eat anymore and Frisk was left to eat the whole plate on her own.   
Now Frisk stared at the empty plate with a sense of accomplishment. The sickly feeling was still there, however it was easy to ignore. She glanced over at Grillby and caught him watching her again. She tilted her head and grinned.  
“What is it?” She asked.   
Grillby said nothing. Frisk shifted uncomfortably under his gaze. After several minutes she couldn’t take it any longer and jumped off the stool and headed for the door.   
“Well it was very nice meeting you Mr Grillby. Thank you for the food, it was very good.” She said as she reached for the door.  
“Wait.” Grillbys voice stopped her just as she was turning the knob. “You’ll freeze if you go out in that storm.”  
Frisk turned back around to face him, however he wasn’t looking at her. He was staring down at the empty plates of food like they confused him. With a sigh he finally met her eyes.   
“There is a spare room upstairs if you wish to use it.”   
Frisk nervously chewed her lip, mulling his offer over in her head. Should I really trust him? He gave me free food and is now offering to let me stay the night. What if it’s a trick? Then again… She glanced out the window at the heavily falling snow. He’s right. We’d freeze out there. Oh I wish I could ask Flowey!   
Hesitantly she nodded and walked back towards the fire monster. He grabbed the plates off of the counter and walked to the door he had disappeared into before, motioning for Frisk to follow. She quietly followed behind him, thanking him again when he held the door open for her. His flames burned higher and brighter for a second, as they had every time Frisk had thanked him for something.   
The room behind the door was a giant kitchen. It was sparkling clean, everything put away in its place except for some things she guessed Grillby had used to make the chips. She jumped as a loud crash echoed around the room and looked over to see Grillby had thrown their plates into a sink. Without even looking at her he started up some stairs tucked away in the corner of the room that she hadn’t noticed until just then. Quietly she followed.  
The hallway at the top of the stairs was plain, a light brown colour with no pictures or anything on the walls. Frisk followed Grillby past a couple of doors and almost bumped into the monster when he stopped suddenly. He reached out to steady her then quickly drew back. She steadied herself and gave Grillby a small smile.   
Grillby made a small noise like he was clearing his throat and opened the door he had stopped at. “This is it.”   
The room was as plain as the hallway, pale yellow walls devoid of any sort of decoration. There was a dresser push against one wall next to a window that faced the forest out the back of the bar. The bed didn’t have any blankets or pillows on it but Frisk went to sit down on it anyway. It was surprisingly soft, relaxing her as she pulled her shoes off and laid back. Grillby had disappeared somewhere, but she hardly even noticed. A contented sigh left her lips and she felt sleep creeping in to take her.  
I didn’t realise how tired I was. That nap before didn’t really help.   
Something soft and warm settled around her and she tiredly forced her eyes open. Grillby wordlessly motioned for her to lift her head and when she laid back she realised her had given her some pillows. Frisk snuggled deeper into the blankets he had tucked around her with another sigh.   
“Thank you.” She murmured, already drifting off to sleep.   
~~~~~  
Grillby stared down at the sleeping girl, his emotions in complete turmoil.   
Really, what is this child doing to me?  
With an annoyed grunt he silently stormed out of the room. When he got to his own room he resisted the urge to slam the door. His emotions were confusing him, and that confusion was making him agitated. He paced around his room for several minutes, muttering to himself under his breath, before he gave up trying to figure out the strange feelings churning inside him and collapsed on his bed.   
I’m too tired to figure this out now, I’ll figure it out tomorrow.   
With a frustrated groan he put his glasses on his nightstand and closed his eyes to wait for sleep to take him.  
~~~~~  
Frisk was about to be consumed by sleep when she felt something tugging at her clothes. She frowned and battered at it. It went away and she sighed happily. Then she felt the blanket get thrown off of her and she groaned. She forced her eyes open and sat up. Flowey was sitting in her lap with an annoyed look on his face.   
“What did you do that for?” She whispered tiredly.  
“To wake you up!” He whispered back. “I couldn’t get you up any other way.”   
“Oh…” She yawned, but quickly stopped when a sharp pain spiked down her throat. “Sorry. What did you want?”   
“I don’t trust Grillby.” He said bluntly.  
Frisk rubbed at her eyes, trying to clear the sleep from them. “Alright.”  
Flowey made a frustrated noise. “You don’t get it! We can’t trust him, can’t trust anyone, and yet you accepted food from him! And then you decided to just follow him up here! What would have happened if he meant to kill you?”  
“But he didn’t!” Frisk winced at the gravely sound of her voice, and cleared her throat before continuing. “We’re fine, well fed and warm. He’s been really nice.”  
“Which is what’s worrying me! Monsters aren’t just nice to strangers. He has to have an ulterior motive.”  
Frisk leaned down and pet him gently on his top most petals. “It’ll be alright. We’ll leave once the storm stops and we won’t have to worry about it anymore. Kay?”  
He gave in and nodded, though he still thought staying was a bad idea. “Kay.”  
Frisk gave him a reassuring smile and pulled him into a hug as she laid down again. She fell asleep mere moments after her head hit the pillow, Flowey curled asleep in her arms.   
That night, thankfully, was devoid of any nightmares.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys!   
> AAAAHHH! I actually managed to update this in time! I didn't think I was going to make it.   
> I know nothing much seems to be going on but trust me we'll get there! Soon. I'm very much looking forward to what is going to happen in the future.   
> If you want to leave a comment, any comment, please do! I eat them up the way Papyrus eats up spaghetti.   
> Thank you all for reading you amazing people!  
> ~Cupcakezys~


	21. #3: Grillby

Grillby is a humanoid monster made completely out of light blue flames. He wears mostly black clothes, normally a t-shirt and pants. He loves wearing boots. He’s a little above average height, around

He doesn’t have a ‘birthday’ as he is an elemental and was therefore summoned and not born, however he celebrates every 1st of January by dipping pinecones – his favourite food – into the best alcohol he has on hand and eating them until he’s completely drunk.

He was summoned at the start of the monster-human war and quickly rose in rank until he was known as the Kings personal weapon. Asgore would send him on missions no-one else could handle and Grillby would complete them all without fail. He never showed mercy to his opponents, no matter who or what they were.

Once they were defeated and forced to live in the Underground he went into hiding for a couple of years as all elementals were being dismissed because they were no longer needed to fight. Grillby and a small band of the strongest elementals hid in the Capital of Home (now known as the Ruins) until they were sure they were forgotten. They revealed themselves when the monsters all moved to New Home and caused a giant uproar. Many monsters wanted them all killed, however the King did nothing and any monster that tried to take them down got dusted. They were soon left alone.

Grillby lived in New Home for two years before the daily struggle to survive got to him. He had grown tired of fighting and so he moved as far away from the city as he could. At first the monsters of Snowdin gave him trouble, however after they learned who he was they left him alone, for the most part. Those that didn’t were either dusted or burned so badly they wished they had been.

He set up shop as a bar tender as he had always had an interest in cooking. He was delighted when he realised he was a natural in the kitchen, however that delight drained away when monsters came to his bar for the drinks and not the food. He became withdrawn and hardly speaks at all except when a fight breaks out and he either throws them out or bets on who’s going to win.

He’s never known emotions like pity, sympathy and love as such emotions would get you killed and so he’s very confused by the emotions Frisk is causing to arise within him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Heya guys!  
> It’s been a while since I’ve done one of these huh? I kinda figured no one really read these and so I focused on the main story, however I got a request to do a profile for Grillby so here it is! If you want to see a profile of any other character please let me know, I am happy to do them if you guys are happy to read them.   
> Grillby has by far became one of my most favourite characters, mostly because of all the damn baby blaster fanfics I’ve been reading. Honestly all the different versions of him are wonderful.   
> So yeah, again the idea of elementals being ‘summoned’ and not born was EllenofX’s and you should go check out her work it’s awesome.   
> If there’s anything you wish to comment then please do, I love those comments. I hope you all have an amazing day/night, and an amazing life in general. If you aren’t feeling the best at the moment know it’s fine, I love you you amazing person!   
> ~Cupcakezys~


	22. Help

Flowey awoke to the feeling of intense heat surrounding him. Sleepily he started panicking as fear filled him.

_Is it Grillby? Is he burning us while we sleep? I knew he couldn’t be trusted! I have to get us out of here._

Flowey wriggled around wildly as he panicked, until finally the heat let up. He blindly lashed out at the place where Grillby should have been standing, only to find the room dark and empty. Confused he looked around for the source of the heat, however no one else was in the room except Frisk.

Frisk…

Careful so as not to wake her, Flowey reached over and gently placed a vine on her forehead. The same heat from before caused him to pull the vine away with a worried frown.

_What’s wrong? Is anything even wrong? Do humans just become extremely warm sometimes?_

Flowey hesitantly hovered around his friends sleeping form, unsure if there was a problem and unwilling to wake Frisk up for nothing.

_Still… if something is wrong… it’s best to make sure._

He reached out and gently shook her, however Frisk only groaned and turned away. Determined, Flowey shook her again, this time quietly calling her name. She shifted to face him and slowly blinked open her eyes.

~~~~~

“Flowey?” Frisk winced at her voice.

Not only did she sound like an old grandma who had smoked her whole life, her throat hurt. Badly. Even the short breaths she was taking now scratched her throat, the pain annoying but not unbearable. She smiled reassuringly at Flowey and sat up.

Too fast.

The world swam and Frisk quickly shut her eyes and held her head in her hands. Once she had felt the dizziness pass she realised Flowey was urgently whispering in her ear, his quiet words like knives stabbing her head. Frisk could only make out some of the words through the intense buzzing in her head.

“Frisk… okay? Is… normal…? What… do to help? Frisk?”

“Yeah.” Frisk rasped. “I’m okay. Just… just a little sick.”

“Sick?” Flowey squeaked, causing her headache to spike again. “Will you be okay? My dad got sick once and he almost… almost died. Are-” His voice hitched and Frisk felt him start shaking. “Are you going to die?”

“NO!” She yelled, then coughed as her throat protested against her. “No.” She continued, much quieter this time. “I’ll just be sick for a while, but I’ll get better soon. I’m not going to die Flowey.”

Flowey still looked unsure so Frisk leaned forward and gave him a small hug. He looked a little reassured, though he was still shaking slightly. Frisk was about to comfort him some more when she noticed a light blue light appear underneath the door to her room. She grabbed Flowey and dumped him on her head just as Grillby opened the door.

The blue flame stared at her, not quite glaring but not smiling either. They stared at each other in uncomfortable silence until Frisk finally gave a awkward little wave.

“Good morning.” She said hoarsely.

Grillby said nothing, but Frisk was convinced that he had the fire equivalent of an eyebrow raised.

“Your voice sounds like crap.” He said and then turned from the room and walked down the stairs.

Frisk sat frozen for a moment, shocked by his brutal honesty. With a gentle nudge from Flowey she shook it off and stood up, staggering slightly as the world spun. Once the dizziness passed she pushed off of the door she had started leaning on and walked slowly down the stairs. When she reached the bottom the sweet sound of food cooking and the smell of chicken soup reached her.

As sweet as the sound of cooking was, it was loud. Her headache hit her full force, and grabbing at her head only made it worse. She collapsed onto a chair in the corner of the room and rested her head on the table in a desperate attempt to stop the pain.

A loud thud near her head caused her to yelp and jump up, simultaneously hurting her head and her throat. A steaming bowl of soup sat on the table before her. Grillby stood above her, definitely glaring this time.

“Eat.”

Frisk blinked from him to the food. She shook her head. “I’m not hungry.”

Grillby glared at her, his flames crackling angrily.

_Uh, that was probably not the best idea I’ve ever had._

“Eat or I make you eat. Understand me kid?” Grillby’s voice was a terrifying growl, reminding Frisk of things she’d rather not remember. “Well?”

Frisk nodded meekly and started eating. After the first couple of spoonful’s she felt her hunger return with a vengeance and started eating as fast as she could without spilling it. Seeing this Grillby nodded and turned to walk out the door to the bar.

“Where are you going Mr Grillby?” Frisk asked around a mouthful of soup.

“I have to set up the bar for the day. Don’t move and finish the food.” With that he was gone.

Frisk smiled to herself. _Grillby acts all tough and emotionless, but I think he’s actually really nice. He just won’t admit it._

Happily she ate her food, shuffling over to the pot and grabbing another bowl for Flowey after she was sure Grillby wouldn’t be coming back any time soon. They talked quietly together, careful to keep an ear out for Grillby, and despite Frisk feeling terrible she was the happiest she had been in a while.

*****

Grillby popped back into the kitchen once, just before he was about to open the bar for the day. He glared at her from the door and told her ‘Leave now or don’t show your face to my customers.’ Frisk wasn’t in any shape to leave, and even if she had the energy she didn’t want to.

_It’s weird but I trust him even though I only just met him._

Frisk forced herself to stand and wash the dishes before she trudged back up the stairs to her bed. Her head swam as she climbed, each step feeling like a giant mountain. Once she finally reached the top she had to lean on the wall as she stumbled to her room. She collapsed onto her bed and pulled the blanket up to her chin and then instantly threw it off again as her body heated up.

Flowey worried silently next to her, but he trusted Frisk knew more about her illness then he did. He alternated between watching the door and watching the now sleeping Frisk, alert for any danger that might befall his friend.

~~~~~

_What the hell!_

Grillby growled as he glanced back at the door separating the bar from his kitchen for what felt like the hundredth time that morning. The kid hadn’t made a sound or shown her face all day and it was driving Grillby crazy. Normal monster kids make a lot of noise, and do their best to show off and make everyone believe they’re the toughest bastard around.

_Then again, it’s not like this kid is very normal. A kind earth elemental._ He almost laughed. _Didn’t think I’d see the day a kind monster walked into the bar, let alone an elemental._ This time he really did laugh. _So much for elementals all being ruthless killers, huh?_

Grillby turned when he heard someone call for another drink and glared down at the monster as he filled up his glass. The drunk monster glared right back at him and muttered something he couldn’t quite catch under their breath. Grillby rolled his eyes and turned away with a huff, his emotional turmoil keeping him from caring enough to throw the monster out like he normally would.

The day passed quickly, Grillby’s normal customers coming and going as usual. Only three fights broke out during the day, which made it one of the best days Grillby had seen in a while.

As he was making his last rounds before closing up for the night he noticed the dogs acting strange. Dogaressa and Dogamy hadn’t come in with the rest of the guard like they normally did, but Grillby hadn’t really cared enough to notice. That is, he didn’t care until he heard Greater Dog and Lesser Dog whispering to each other in dog speak. Most couldn’t understand the rough barks and growls but Grillby had always had a talent for picking up other languages quite fast, and he had had years to perfect his knowledge.

-Do you know how it happened?- Greater yipped.

-I heard it was a surprise attack. Some monster from Waterfall jumped Dogaressa while she was patrolling and Dogamy flew into a rage and dusted them when he found out.- Lesser growled back.

Grillby inched closer so he could hear better, sure no one would notice him despite his bright flames. He could be quite invisible when he wanted to be.

-This is why I’m never going to find a mate.- Lesser continued. –It’s far too dangerous to put your life in someone else’s hands. I mean Dogamy is a mess and Dogaressa wasn’t even fatally wounded! He probably would have dusted himself had she not survived.-

Greater Dog wined. –So you’re not even the tiniest bit jealous of them? Of what they have together? Because I know I am, sometimes.-

-No, I’m not!- Lesser sent the other dog a glare. –Not going soft are you, you little poof ball?-

Greater glared back and growled, looking ready to fight. –Of course not!-

Grillby chose this moment to intervene, telling the two dogs it was closing time and if they wanted to fight they could take it outside. They growled and put up a fuss, but eventually left with the rest of Grillby’s late customers.

As he cleaned up the bar he mulled over what he had heard. _So, someone finally got one of them huh? About time too. They’ve showed their weaknesses for each other plenty of times. Still…_ Grillby smiled slightly as he wiped down the last table. _It’s nice to see love hasn’t been completely abandoned._

Once he finally finished cleaning his bar he walked into the kitchen, expecting to find Frisk messing around, however the room was spotless and the dishes from breakfast had been washed clean. He glanced around the room again to make sure she wasn’t there and then he climbed the stairs to the room he had let the kid stay in.

When he opened the door he was surprised to see Frisk fast asleep. He was even more surprised to see a golden flower glaring up at him with pleading but fearful eyes. Before he could say anything the flower spoke, his voice shaking slightly.

“Pl-please.” The flower whimpered. “Please she-she’s sick. You have t-to help her.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi guys!  
> Surprise surprise I'm not dead! I'm sorry it's taken so long for me to finish this chapter, I got hit with massive writers block. Not to mention I kept getting sick... BUT! Last weekend I went on a little holiday and I'm hoping now I'll be able to jump back into this!  
> I made this chapter longer than normal so I hope you all can forgive me for not updating in a while. It might take a bit for me to get back into, I might have the next chapter written in an hour. Who knows!   
> This Sunday there probably won't be an update, however next Sunday I will try my best to get one done for you guys.  
> As always all comments are welcome and treasured, if there's anything you wish to say I would love to hear it.   
> Thank you all for reading this far, it really means a lot to me!  
> ~Cupcakezys~


	23. One Step Forward, Two Steps Back.

Grillby only barely managed to stop himself from burning the flower on the spot. Having a monster you had never seen before in your house usually means something’s getting stolen or someone’s trying to dust you.

Grillby’s flames crackled loudly around him. The flower was staring at him expectantly, waiting for his reply. When the silence continued to stretch on the flower let out a whimper.

“I can’t heal.” The flower said and looked down. Grillby saw tears welling up in the corner of his eyes. “Please, you have to help her.”

Grillby shook his head and glared when he saw the flower start to get angry. “I’m no good at healing either, and obviously my cooking didn’t help.” Grillby grimaced as he looked down at the sick kid. “I know someone who can help though. If she’s in the right mood.”

The flower looked torn, but then he nodded. “Alright.”Grillby turned to leave but the flower called him back. “Umm…” He gathered his courage and looked Grillby right in the eyes for the first time. “You’re going to have to carry her.”

Grillby raised an eyebrow and chuckled, loud and very clearly fake. “I thought you wanted to heal her little weed? Don’t you think burning her alive is the exact opposite of what you want?”

“No! I mean yes! I mean…” He let out a frustrated growl. “If you lower your temperature a little she’ll be fine.”

Grillby snorted. “She’ll be burnt to a crisp.”

“My… her vines aren’t that weak!” He protested. Frisk coughed in her sleep and rolled over. “Just try it!”

Grillby glared. He hated lowering his temperature for anything. Not only was it hard to do, it was also stupidly dangerous. If it was Hotlands it would be fine, but if someone got the drop on him in Snowdin he wasn’t sure he’d be able to defend himself.

_But still…_ He glared down at Frisk and felt his flames soften.

“Very well.” Grillby growled.

He closed his eyes briefly and concentrated. He felt a chill all the way to his core as his flames died down to a soft orange glow.

He hesitated before picking Frisk up. “Are you sure she’ll be okay?”

The flower hesitated then slowly wrapped himself around Grillbys’ arm. Grillby tensed and waited for him to burst into flame, but nothing happened. Content, the flower moved down to Frisk.

“Let’s go.”

*****

Grillby glared at the flower monster in his arms. The flower, Flowey, Grillby remembered him saying his name was, completely ignored him. He was scanning the snowy landscape for enemies, his petals tense. His whole demeanour screamed fearless protector. Grillby couldn’t even imagine this being the same terrified flower from before. He was actually impressed by the change.

“You realise only stupid fucks would be awake at this hour.” Grillby stated, shifting his hold on the kid so he didn’t drop her. “Stop being so tense, you’re making me heat up. I doubt you want that.”

Finally Flowey looked at him. “What if someone does attack?”

Grillby rolled his eyes. “Then they’ll have a very brief moment to regret their decision.”

“Oh.” Flowey relaxed a little, however Grillby noticed he still scanned the area every now and again.

_Good._

In truth Grillby wasn’t sure what he would do if a monster decided to attack them. He felt extremely weak with his flame this cool, like a strong wind could easily dust him. Hey felt his flames heat up at the very thought but forced himself to stay calm and cool. He didn’t want to hurt the child cradled in his arms.

_Which is backwards. Isn’t it?_ He felt a growl rise in his chest. _Only weak monsters care for other monsters, and weak monsters die._

His steps came to a halt. He felt his breathing quicken as his magic reacted to a threat that no longer existed, at least not down here. He swallowed back the irrational fear building within him and gently placed Frisk down. Flowey gave him a confused look but he ignored the little flower and walked to the base of the door. Taking a deep breath he raised his fist and knocked.

~~~~~

When Frisk finally came to she couldn’t believe how much better she felt. The scratching pain in her throat had disappeared and she could actually breathe through her nose again. She sat up and was pleased when there was no dizziness following the motion.

As she looked around she realised why the room felt familiar.

_What am I doing back in Toriels house?_

A brightly glowing star sat next to her bed and she reached over and touched it. A shiver went through her and she withdrew her hand. She couldn’t see Flowey anywhere in the room so she tossed the covers off and quietly opened the door. The hallway was dark and empty as she made her way to the lounge room. Toriel was sitting in her chair next to the fireplace. Frisk spotted Flowey on the arm of her chair and felt immediately felt safer.

“Flowey.” She called out as she walk in. “Toriel! It’s so good to see you again.”

“Frisk!” Flowey yelled. She could hear the relief in his voice. “You’re awake!”

It was then that Frisk saw the fire in the fireplace wasn’t the only flame in the room. Standing in the corner, in all his bright blue glory, was Grillby. Frisk grinned at him and was about to call out to him when the look on his face made her stop short. If looks could kill she knew she would be a pile of ash right now.

_Oh._ She looked down at her bare, non-disguised arms. _He knows I’m human now._

Her breath caught in her throat as she watched him walk over. She stood her ground, though she could feel herself shaking. Out of the corner of her eye she saw Toriel stand up and glare at Grillby. Then all her attention was focused on the fire monster in front of her.

He glared down at her, arms crossed, for the longest time. Then he reached out with on hand and Frisk shut her eyes quickly. There was a rustle and something warm touched her shoulder. She flinched and opened her eyes.

Grillby was no longer a bright blue. His flames had cooled to a gentle orange and there was a gentleness in his eyes she had never seen before. Frisk stared at him mutely as he seemed to search her face for something. Whatever it was he found it and rocked back on his heels with a nod.

“Are you sure you should be up so soon? You still look like crap.” He squeezed her shoulder.

Slowly she nodded. “I’m okay.”

Grillby stared for a moment then nodded. “Good.” He stood and the moment was gone. “That means we can finally leave this shit hole.”

“Excuse me?” Toriel spoke up, obviously offended. “This ‘shit hole’ is my home thank you very much. And I could have easily sent you away or worse, I could have dismissed you.” She sighed. “But I didn’t and I won’t as you seem to care for my child, and she seems to care for you.”

Grillby seemed to pale, his flames turning a weak yellow before he pulled himself together and glowed his normal blue. He muttered something Frisk couldn’t hear and Toriel raised an eyebrow. Ignoring the two adults for the moment Frisk rushed over to Flowey. She pulled him into an almost suffocating hug and sunk to the floor.

“Are you okay?” She whispered.

Flowey soundlessly nodded then buried his head in the crook of her neck. They stayed like that for countless minutes, both comforted by the others presence. Too soon for either child’s likening Toriel told them to go wash up before breakfast. Frisk stood and ran to the bathroom and by the time she got back Toriel had already placed four plates of pie on the table. Frisk sat between Flowey and Grillby and hummed with anticipation.

“Have you ever had one of Toriels pies Mr Grillby?” She asked.

“I can’t say I’ve had the honour, no.” His voice sounded as dry as a dessert.

Frisk gasped excitedly. “You’re in for a treat then! Toriels pies are the best food on the entire planet!”

“Really?” He asked sarcastically.

Oblivious Frisk nodded. Toriel sat down and flashed her a smile. “Why thank you my child.”

They all dug in and in record time Flowey had finished his slice and was asking for seconds. Frisk noticed Grillby had a small smile on his face and grinned.

_I knew he’d love it._

*****

“You’re still determined to go then?”

Frisk nodded to Toriel and smiled at her worried expression. “I’ll be fine. Everything will work out, you’ll see.”

“I hope so my child. I hope so.” Toriel leaned down and hugged her.

Frisk returned the hug and refused to let go for the longest time. Eventually Grillby grew impatient and growled at her to hurry up. Reluctantly Frisk let go. Once again Toriel shut the door as soon as the three were back in the snowy forest outside of Snowdin.

With no snow blocking her vision Frisk found the forest absolutely stunning. While it wasn’t sun light, the light of the Underground shined beautifully against the freshly fallen snow. There was something awe inspiring about the ancient looking trees and Frisk found she couldn’t look away.

“Frisk come on.” Grillby growled.

Frisk glanced at him and nodded. She ran over to Grillby and fell into step behind him. They passed the bridge and sentry station she had seen before and Frisk couldn’t help but stop and look. It was the same as before, messy and stocked with bottles of mustard. Curiously she picked one up and pulled the lid off. She wrinkled up her nose at the smell and offered the bottle to Flowey when he leaned over. Flowey sneezed and Frisk laughed as she put the bottle back.

“Frisk!” The shout caused her to whip around. Grillby was striding towards her, flames cackling in anger. “What the fuck? You have to stay fucking close to me, do you understand? Anyone could fucking jump out at you in these woods.” He grabbed her by the wrist and pulled her along. “Don’t leave my side until we get back to my bar. Got it?”

Frisk nodded, jogging to keep up with Grillbys longer strides. “Got it.”

“Good.”

They walked in silence after that. Thankfully no monsters attacked them before they arrived at Snowdin. Grillby sped up his pace as they walked through the town. Frisk noticed some monsters stop and stare at her and decided to quicken her pace as well, getting as close to Grillby as she could.

They all breathed a sigh of relief as they finally made it inside. Grillby leaned against the door and pinched the bridge of his nose with a long sigh. Frisk groaned and dropped onto the closest chair, the memory of the monsters stares causing shivers to run up her spine. Flowey pulled her into a hug and slowly she felt the tension leave her body.

For the time being they were safe. For now that was all Frisk really needed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hewo Everyone!!  
> Hope you all enjoyed this chapter. Sorry it took so long, life has been a little crazy at the moment. This chapter’s a little longer than normal so hopefully that makes up for my lack of updates a bit. On a good note school holidays are starting up at the end of this week which means more writing time! So (hopefully) I’ll be updating more often. Sorry for any mistakes, please point them out if you see any.   
> Thank you guys for all the love and support for this story, it really means a lot to me. Sometimes I think I wouldn’t be able to continue without the wonderful comments you people leave so know I truly thank you all from the bottom of my heart.  
> I hope you all have a lovely day!
> 
> ~Cupcakezys~


	24. Exploring – Probably Not The Best Idea

“Are you sure about this?” Grillby asked gruffly from behind her.

Frisk stopped pulling on the way-too-big coat and turned to face the fire monster. He was sitting on the same bar stool he had been sitting on when Frisk first met him. Everything was so similar to that day, however now Frisk moved to him without a shred of fear. Reaching up she gave him a tight hug before stepping back and giving him a determined nod.

“I have to. There’s someone waiting for me.” Frisk caught his curious look and shook her head before he could say anything. “It doesn’t matter.”

Grillby looked like he wanted to ask more but Frisk gave him a look that pleaded with him not to push it. He sighed and ruffle her hair, his hand turning a gentle orange before he touched her and changing back to blue once she wasn’t near him.

“Very well.” His voice was the gentlest she had ever heard it. “You should leave now while the storm has stopped. It won’t take long for it to start up again.”

Frisk nodded and gave him another hug before she zipped the jacket all the way up to her chin. Flowey moved from her head to her neck and Frisk pulled the fluffy hood up so it almost completely covered her face. Flowey popped his head out at her shoulder and grinned at Grillby.

“Thank you.” He said quietly.

Grillby nodded to the small flower and Frisk smiled at him as she patted Flowey on the head. She turned to the door and pushed it open with a little more force than necessary. When she glanced back Grillby was facing away from her and for a moment she hesitated. Then her eyes narrowed in determination and she shut the door behind her. A familiar golden glow catches her eye and she runs her hand through the star as she walks past it.

For the next twenty seconds she marches, determination fuelling her movements more than anything, and then she realises just how cold it is. The snow isn’t falling any longer, and the wind had calmed down, but being in Grillby’s presence for so long had caused her to forget just how cold Snowdin was. Gritting her teeth she suppressed shivers and continued walking.

The path ahead split in two directions. One led the way Flowey said they needed to go, and the other headed to places unknown. Despite everything Frisk felt herself pulled to explore.

Flowey didn’t understand what the human thought she was doing. “Frisk? This is the wrong way! Waterfall is in the other direction.”

“I know.” Frisk smiled as she saw a little house ahead. “I just want to see what’s here, that’s all.”

“What? That’s a terrible idea!” Flowey moved so they were staring at each other. Frisk stopped walking and waited. “What if someone notices?” He gave her obviously human form a pointed stare. “You said you didn’t want me exhausting myself keeping you disguised all the time! One good look and they’re bound to realise. We’ve been lucky so far but the minute we run into trouble we’re dead.”

“I don’t think may people will be able to see much of me with this hood up.” Frisk tugged the hood closer around her head. “Besides what if our good luck never runs out?”

Flowey groaned. “You’re not going to change your mind are you?” Frisk shook her head. “… Let’s go then. But we gotta be quick!”

Frisk nodded and happily started humming. Carefully she walked up to the house and admired it. There was muffled yelling coming from the other side and suddenly Frisk had the strongest urge to knock. Gently she tapped the door three times, Flowey whisper-screaming at her to _run, stupid run_! Instead she simply pulled the hood so it covered her face even more.

“What was that?”

“I don’t fucking know. Why don’t you go answer it and find out?”

“It was so lovely though… maybe if we don’t answer they’ll knock again.”

“Wha-! And if it’s the Captain? He’ll dust us for not answering!”

There was a snort. “Since when did he knock nicely?”

Frisk bit her lip in the silence that followed the question, but eventually gave in and knocked again.

“Ahhh. You see, I was right!”

“Hmph. They do have a nice knock I guess…”

Frisk giggled and walked away, glad whoever was in the house wasn’t fighting anymore. She saw a monster throwing ice cubes into a river a little way ahead of her, but despite Flowey hissing at her that she was crazy, she wasn’t about to walk up to random monsters. At least not ones that look like they would chuck her into the river as well if she got too close.

“I still don’t understand! What were you thinking, knocking like that? What if they had answered huh? What would you have said?”

Frisk shrugged at her raging friend. “I don’t know. I would have thought of something.”

Flowey shook his head and grumbled some more, but Frisk knew he wasn’t really mad. He was just worried, and more than a little scared. Frisk herself was full of curiosity. She started humming to calm the little flower down as they approached a river. There was nothing there but Frisk crouched down to get a better look at the water.

To her surprise there seemed to be several fish-like monsters swimming around in the ice-cold water. A small one in a striped shirt looked up and waved. Frisk grinned and waved back before moving away from the edge. She didn’t want anyone else seeing her.

With nothing left to explore Frisk turned on her heel and headed back to the centre of Snowdin.

“Finally.” Flowey breathed a sigh of relief. “Now we can get back on track. If we hurry we can make it to Waterfall before the fog sets in.”

“Fog?” Frisk whispered.

“Yeah fog. It sets in every night here. Well, apparently. Grillby thought it would be a good idea to avoid the fog and I agree.”

Frisk hummed in thought as she continued walking. While she agreed it was probably best to get away from Snowdin as soon as possible, she couldn’t help but want to explore. Another house caught her attention and when she got closer she discovered it was a library, though the sign was broken in several places.

Flowey could already sense what Frisk wanted to do. “Frisk no.” He whined, dragging out the o. “We have to keep moving.”

“Five minutes?” Frisk pleaded.

Flowey sighed and against his better judgement agreed. Frisk grinned and muttered a thank you as she pushed the door open.

The inside was fairing only a little better than its sign.

There was only one light hanging from the centre of the roof, leaving the edges of the room lost in shadow. Cobwebs hung everywhere; the roof, the walls and even some of the bookcases were covered. Dirt and snow was all over the floor, making the action of wiping her shoes useless. Curiously Frisk headed towards the closest shelf.

Surprisingly the books were well looked after, clean and free of any dust. Frisk pulled a book out at random and giggled at the title. She was about to open it and peek inside when a voice spoke behind her.

“What are you doing here?”

Frisk tensed and spun around, prepared to bolt out of the room with an angry monster on her heals, however looking around she couldn’t see anyone. Flowey moved down to her arm and they shared a scared and confused glance. A bad feeling grew in Frisks stomach and she felt the urge to get out as fast as she could grow into an uncontrollable need.

Frisks hand had just gripped the door handle when something pulled on her jacket. She squealed and spun around, raising the book she had forgot she was holding. The monster flinched and hastily moved backwards, fear written all over their face. They started babbling, covering their head with their arms and shaking terribly.

“I’m s-sorry I-I did-didn’t mean t-to!” They scooted back further, putting a broken desk between them both. “I-it’s just y-you ca-can’t t-take a b-book wi-without b-borrowing it fir-first.”

“Oh?” Frisk frowned, then again remembered the book in her hands. “Oh! I’m sorry!” She placed the book on the table and took a step back. She cupped her hand around Flowey and looked down at her feet. “I didn’t mean to take it. You just, er, startled me when you spoke before.”

“Oh…” They looked relived and then sad. “So-so you d-don’t want to b-borrow the book?”

Frisk glanced up, surprised. “I would love to!” She glanced down again at the book and giggled. “Especially with such an interesting title.”

The monster relaxed a little at her words, not trusting her completely but feeling a little more at ease. Mostly they were just glad the kid wasn’t yelling or beating them up.

They glanced at the title and smiled. “Y-yes this one is… quite the read.”

Frisk couldn’t help the laughter that spilled from her lips. “101 Corny Jokes and Puns. Sounds like quite the read yes.”

The monster stood straight for the first time and Frisk got her first good look at them. Their square glasses kept falling down their long snout, causing them to have to push them up constantly. The sharp spikes on their head were intimidating when she first saw them, but now that she looked closely they were rounded rather than sharp. The thing that stopped Frisk for being scared was the fact that even at their full height the green monster was much smaller than her.

“S-so?”

Frisk blinked and looked to them. “Oh sorry! I, um, yeah. Yeah I would like to borrow the book...?” Frisk trailed off as she realised she didn’t know their name. “Oh I haven’t introduced myself! My name’s Frisk and this is Flowey.” She gestured to the flower hanging onto her arm and he gave them a little wave.

“Ah! My n-name’s Casey.” Casey smiles at her and holds out the book. “Here you go!”

Frisk grinned and accepted the book. “Thank you Casey!”

Frisk felt her heart drop as the familiar shock at being thanked settled on their face. “W-w-what?”

“Thank you. I didn’t think I’d come in here and actually get a book.” Frisk felt her smile widen as she hugged said book. “And meeting you was nice especially since you’re one of the few who...” She trailed off and her smile turned into a small frown.

“Showed some kindness?” Casey finished for her, though they sounded doubtful.

Frisk nodded. “Yeah.”

There was an awkward silence for a moment before Flowey tugged on her arm. “We need to get going.”

Frisk nodded and smiled back at Casey. “Flowey’s right, we really should be going. It was lovely meeting you Casey! Thank you again for letting me borrow this.” She held up the book and then waved as she walked to the door.

“Y-you’re welcome! A-and it was a pleasure m-meeting you too.” Casey called as they waved back.

Frisk stepped back into the cold and quickly started walking the way she should have been going from the start. She felt a fresh wave of excitement as she approached a scary two-story house that looked in dire need of re-painting as well as some other things. The longer she stared at the house the longer she found herself thinking that while it was scary it also looked empty. Like if anyone lived there they didn’t spend much time inside.

Staring at the almost abandoned house made Frisk feel sad. She clenched her fists and decided she would help whoever it was that lived there. Determination rose within her and as she stepped past a small shed she barely stopped to hover her hand over the golden star that appeared there.

Squinting ahead Frisk could see where the snow ended and became black nothingness. “Is that where we’re going?”

Flowey poked his head out from the warmth of the hood and gasped as the cold air hot his face. “Yep. Those dark caves are what makes up Waterfall.”

Frisk hummed and shifted so Flowey was once again snuggled in the hood. The jacket had done a beautiful job of both keeping the two warm and keeping Frisk’s secret. The sleeves went past her hands, which allowed her to curl them into fists and cover the holes to keep them warm. It stopped just short of her knees in a way that made Frisk feel like she was pleasantly swimming in fabric without any chance of tripping over – so long as she didn’t accidently trip on air.

Looking at it now as she walked she realised it was familiar. After studying it closer and doing her best to remember the previous days she finally placed where she had seen it before. Her breath caught in her throat for a second and she stumbled.

 _Oh of course I stumbled! Had to go and jinx it._ She righted herself and continued walking. _Still, how did Grillby get this? And why give it to me?_

The jacket belonged to the skeleton she had spotted while peeking out from her hiding spot behind Flowey’s vines.

 _Sans, I think his name was? Does he have a habit of losing his jackets or something? Not that I’m complaining, this thing’s super comfy. I can’t keep it though._ She started humming to get rid of the silence. _If I ever see him again I’ll give it back. I’m sure he misses it._ Frisk stopped and blinked. _What the-? Oh. Ooops._

Firsk stood completely still in the dense fog that had crept up out of nowhere. She forced her panic down when she realised she couldn’t see much past her nose. She swallowed and Flowey poked his head out to see why they had stopped.

“Hey Frisk what’s wrong-?” His eyes widened when he saw the fog and his mouth made a small o.

“I guess this is why you wanted me to hurry huh?” Frisk said sheepishly.

Flowey suddenly turned to glare at her. “Yes this is why I wanted you to hurry! This is exactly what I wanted to avoid! But no, you just had to go exploring the town full of murderous monsters didn’t you? The same monsters that wouldn’t hesitate to kill you if they knew the truth.”

Frisk flinched at the end but shook her head gently. “I’m sorry but I had to! It was important-”

“More important than making it to Waterfall without getting hopelessly lost in fog?”

“Don’t be dramatic! We’re not hopelessly lost Flowey!”

“Oh yeah? Then which way do we go, miss I’m-an-oh-so-smart-human?” Flowey looked around to empathise his point.

Frisk huffed and forced herself to calm down. _He’s just scared. We both are. Fighting isn’t going to help, we need to come up with a way to get out of this fog safely._ She was about to tell Flowey to calm down and help her figure out a plan when a loud and terrifying voice spoke from somewhere in front of them.

“OH, I DON’T THINK YOU’LL NEED TO WORRY ABOUT WHERE YOU’RE GOING LITTLE _HUMAN.”_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello dear readers!   
> First of all I’m SO SORRY this took so long. Life became difficult and writing just lost all its beautiful happiness for a while. THAT BEING SAID! I am back and hopefully I’m here to stay. I do love this little world I have created so know I’m not going to abandon it, even if it does take me a while to update.  
> Second of all! Thank you all so much for reading, commenting and leaving kudos. It really means a lot to me. Without you all showing your love I’m not sure I’d be able to carry on, with this story or any other.  
> And just as a side note I do have other stories I am currently working on and posting, most of which are Undertale related. One is a random idea I had while in writing class at school and has now become a full blown series. If you wanna check it out please do, it would mean the world to me. I’m told that the first one is really good, but I would love to know what all you guys think.   
> Lastly OH MY GOD PAPYRUS!!! Finally you join the story properly. I’m so happy we’re here. But what will happen now? Can anyone guess correctly? Do I even know what’s going to happen? Or is this story now writing itself? Who knows! Find out next time!  
> Hugs for everyone cause you’re all amazing and deserve them, okay? Never think otherwise!  
> ~Cupcakeszys~


	25. First Time’s a Charm

Frisk and Flowey both screamed as Frisk stumbled backwards, their cries cut short when Frisk fell, hard. Flowey gulped and quickly wrapped vines around Frisk's arms and legs, urging her to get back up. The tall skeleton chuckled as Frisk stood, his red scarf and armour piercing the white snow like a drop of blood.

Frisk took a step back, ready to run, however Papyrus tuts and wiggled a finger at her. "DON'T TEST MY PATIENCE BY RUNNING HUMAN. STAND AGAINST THE COMMANDER OF THE ROYAL GUARD AND DIE WITH AT LEAST SOME HONOUR."

Frisk ignores his warning and turns on her heel, fleeing back towards Snowdin. Back towards Grillby. The fog is starting to clear now, and had her mind not been filled with fear Frisk would have noted that she could see her surroundings once again. So caught up in the skeleton behind her Frisk didn't notice the smaller of the brothers seemingly appearing right in front of her. His left eye flashed a deep red and sharp bones spiked up from the earth, ready to impale the two fleeing his brother.

"Frisk! STOP!" Flowey yelled, spotting the wall of bones first.

Frisk focused and skidded to a halt, Flowey digging in some of his vines to help. Frisk opened her mouth to speak but all that left her was a sigh of air as a dull bone rose from the ground and slammed into her stomach. Frisk wrapped her arms around her middle, struggling to breathe as she curled up in the snow.

Papyrus stood above her curled form, shaking his head and making a noise akin to clicking ones tongue. "NOW, NOW, NOW HUMAN WHAT DID I SAY ABOUT RUNNING? NOW NOT ONLY ARE YOU GOING TO DIE, YOU'RE GOING TO DIE A COWARD."

Flowey unfurled himself from Frisks arm, growing tall and staring the skeleton in the eye in defiance. "You want to get to her, then you're going to have to get through me first."

Papyrus chuckled darkly, however Flowey didn't even flinch; he was determined to protect his friend. "EASY ENOUGH. YOU LOOK PRETTY FUCKING WEAK TO ME WEED."

Frisk, though happy and proud of him for sticking up for her, worried about what would come next.

_He's no match for the Royal Commander._ Grimacing, she pushed herself onto her knees. _Then again, it's not like I'm any stronger._

The world turned grey around her and she looked up. Flowey and Papyrus were facing each other, neither moving as they waited for the other to create an opening. Frisk noticed Sans a little ways off, watching the fight the same way she was.

Finally Flowey moves, a storm of pellets raining down on the skeleton. Papyrus laughed as he dodged most of them, with the few that he didn't dodge bouncing harmlessly off his armour. He summons a wave of sharpened bones and throws them at Flowey, whom forms a cluster of vines to act as a shield.

Frisk balls her hands to fists. "Flowey! Be careful!"

He doesn't turn to her as he whisper-yells. "I will! Frisk you need to get out of here. Once your safe I can disappear underground and catch up to you."

Frisk bites her lip, torn. _I don't want to leave him! What happens if he gets hurt and I'm not here? Then again, we can't beat Papyrus. Running is the best option._

Frisk nodded once, then sprinted the way the two had originally been going before they got lost in the fog. Papyrus roared, cursing and screaming as Frisk made her escape. Frisk glanced back once, spotting Flowey blocking Papyrus from following her, and breathed a little easier.

She turned back around just as Papyrus screams at the top of his lungs. "SANS YOU USELESS FUCK STOP HER!”

Frisk looked around wildly for the other skeleton as she ran. _Oh no I completely forgot about him!_

She's just starting to think he must have ran off when her soul appears in front of her and she's forced to the ground as her soul gains a blue-ish hue. She struggled back to her feet, every movement sluggish as if something was trying to stop her from moving. When she raised her head Sans is standing a little ways in front of her, left eye and hand glowing a deep red with some blue mixed in.

_What? He wasn't there a second ago!_

Frisk screamed as she was pushed back by some unknown force, her body making a huge gash in the pure white snow. She stopped at Papyrus's boots. She looked up at him and a cold ball of dread made a pit in her stomach. Flowey screeched her name and sent his vines out as Papyrus grinned evilly, both his eyes bright red.

Frisk screamed as sharp bones pierced her entire body, pain overtaking everything she ever was and ever will be. Her soul shook dangerously and then cracked to pieces above her and the world fades to black.

...

...

Continue?

...

No?

...

Reset?

...

...

...

No?

...

Continue?

...

...

Golly you look so confused.

...

...

You want me to explain?

...

Alright. How about you start by opening your eyes?

...

...

...

Frisk gasped and opened her eyes. Everything around her was pitch black, except for two glowing buttons above her. One said Continue and one said Reset.

_That voice! Was this what they were talking about?_

"Yes."

Frisk whirled around in panic at the voice behind her. Her panic turns to shock as she stared at someone she can only describe as her twin, though she knows that's impossible.

"Who-who are you? Where are we?" Frisk gestures to the glowing buttons. "And what are they?"

Her lookalike held their hands out in an attempt to look non-threatening. "You need to stay calm. I'm going to explain everything to you, but you can't freak out. Do you remember what happened before you got here?"

Frisk thought for a moment, then shook her head roughly. "No! Where even is 'here'? Everything is pitch black!"

"Frisk!" The other child moved forward and placed their hands on her shoulders. "Deep breaths. If you are calm you'll remember. After that I will tell you everything you need to know."

Frisk took deep breaths, doing her best to calm down. She focused on the child in front of her instead of the darkness threatening to consume her. Slowly her mind cleared and she suddenly cried out as if she were hit. Everything came rushing back in an instant. The skeleton brothers, the fight, Sans pushing her into Papyrus, Flowey screaming as bones pierced her skin, her soul **splitting into pieces** -!

"I'm dead." Frisk whispered, her mind feeling as if it is detached from everything else.

The child nodded and stepped back. "Yes you are." They pause for a moment, hesitant. "And so am I."

Frisks eyes widened. You-you are?"

She nodded. "My name is Chara."

_Chara? Where do I know that name?_

"Frisk."

Chara smiled slightly. "I know."

They stood there awkwardly for a moment and then Frisk gasps and looks at Chara in surprise. The other child shifts from foot to foot, nervous under the now intense gaze of their almost-double. Frisk grabs Chara's hands and grins.

"You're the one Fl-Asriel found aren't you? You're the first human that fell."

Chara looks down at the ground and nods slightly. "Yes."

"Oh wow! What are you doing here? Flo-Asriel told me you died years ago.”

Chara nods, looking back up with confidence. "Right. I'm here to explain how everything works to you. Right now we're in the Void." Chara opens her arms wide, gesturing all around them. "Nothing exists here. Not time, not sound, not people.”

"Then why are we here?" Frisk asks.

"Because you need to make a choice. Right now the world that you just came from is continuing on after your death. You have the power to turn back time to before you died." She pointed to the buttons. "You can Reset the world back to when you fell into the Underground. Or you can continue from your last Save Point.”

Frisk's mind reeled and she struggled to understand what Chara was talking about. "Save Points?"

"Those glowing stars you've been seeing everywhere? They Save your process and let you return to that point in time." Chara threw a concerned glance at Frisk. "Should I continue?"

Frisk nodded, though she wasn't sure how much of it she'd understand. "Please."

"Once you choose one you can continue on from that point as if you had never died. No-one besides you will remember what happened."

Frisk tilted her head. "So... I can turn back time? And make it so I never died? How?"

Charred grinned and gestured to the buttons above them. "Pick one."

Frisk gazed at the buttons for a moment before she turned her attention back to Chara. "How come I can do this? I don't think just everyone can turn back time at will."

Chara shook her head. "It's the magic of the Underground. It has been growing stronger and stronger ever since the monsters were sealed away. Your Determination reached out and used that magic to create a permanent Save Point." Chara shrugged. "If someone with more Determination were to fall into the Underground they would gain the power to Reset."

Frisk nodded and looked up at her two choices. "What about you?"

Chara blinked. "I'm dead. I can't do much more than watch you."

Frisk considered that for a moment. "Could you come with me?"

Chara shook her head. "Even if I did I doubt anyone but you would be able to see me."

"But wouldn't that be better than staying here all alone?" Chara shifted and mutters something too quiet to hear. "Pardon?"

She shook her head and walked to the two buttons. "Okay. Let's try it."

Frisk grinned and walked forward, taking Chara's hand in hers. The buttons float down to eye level and Frisk reached up.

...

Reset?

...

No?

…

Continue?

...

Okay then.

...

Loading last Save Point.

*****

Frisk shivered as cold surrounded her and flinched at the harsh sound of roaring wind. She had gotten so used to the lack of anything in the Void she had forgotten what the living world was like.

_Oh god!_ She patted herself down, searching for sharp bones sticking out of her skin. She found none and collapsed on the ground, her entire body shaking. _I'm fine. I turned back time so that never happened._

A small sob invaded her thoughts and she starts. Her shaking hand came up to her cheek, but she found no tears. She was close to crying, but hadn't actually started.

"Friiisk." A voice whined next to her ear.

Frisk gasped and hugged the small flower close. "Flowey! What's wrong?"

"I'm-I'm sorry!" He sobbed into her shoulder. "I tr-tried but I wasn't strong e-e-enough! I couldn't protect you. I'm so s-s-sorry."

"It seems I was wrong about no one remembering. Sorry."

Frisk whipped her head around. Chara stood next to her, basically see-through except for the red glow that surrounded her body. From the way Flowey continued to sob Frisk guessed he could neither hear not see Chara.

_Which may or may not be for the best, considering they were sort-of friends what they were alive._

Frisk decided to ignore her for the moment, instead trying to comfort the sobbing flower in her arms. "Hey now." She cooed softly. "It's alright. You did amazingly well. It was my fault that happened. I should have noticed the other skeleton."

Flowey looked up at her, his face wet with tears. "But..." He looked pained. "You died!"

Frisk shushed him and hugged him again. "Yes. But see look - I'm fine now!" Frisk pulled back and grinned, holding out her arms for him to see. "Not a scratch."

Flowey looked up at her, sniffling. "I didn't know you could Load."

Frisk stiffened, then relaxed. "I didn't either." She shot a glance at Chara, who was staring at Flowey intensely. "How do you know about that?"

Flowey hung his head. "I... I used to be able to do it. But then one day a certain human fell that had more Determination than me and I haven't been able to since. Even when they died and their soul was caught before it broke so they couldn't Reset anymore I couldn't Load."

Frisk hummed and forced herself to her feet. "Then perhaps you can tell me how it works?"

Flowey brightened, just a little, and started explain Loads and Resets. Frisk tuned out, having heard all this already from Chara. Frisk glanced over at her almost-double and found the girl staring at her.

As soon as Chara noticed Frisk watching her she spoke. "That's Asriel, isn't it?" Frisk nodded, ever so slightly, and Chara sighed. "I... I knew he died but I didn't know he came back as a flower. I only started watching your journey after you left the Ruins so I was suspicious but... now..." Chara sighed again. "Knowing and guessing are two different things."

Frisk smiled sympathetically at her and reached out to squeeze her hand. She was surprised when her hand actually grabbed into the other girl's and didn't just pass through her, and from the look on Chara's face she was surprised too.

"... and that just about sums everything up. Any questions?" Flowey finished his explanation.

Frisk shook her head, smiling. "It's a lot to take in all at once, but I think I got it."

"Okay! Good." Flowey smiled, his tears completely gone. "So what should we do now?”

Frisk frowned, considering. "I don't think we should waste any more time. I can't afford to wait until the fog clears, and if another snowstorm hits who knows how long we'll be stuck here. I think we should continue forward like before, except this time we shouldn't talk. Hopefully we can sneak past the skeletons."

Flowey frowned too. "I understand you wanting to keep moving but what if we run into them again?"

Chara stepped forward, shaking her head. "As-Flowey is right. It would be better to wait. You may be able to Load and Reset but dying still hurts."

Frisk shrugged. "Then we run, and failing that I'll try and talk them down. I can always just Load if things go wrong."

Flowey grumbled. "I still think we should wait. Go back to Grillby and head out again once the fog clears."

"I can't Flowey. I have to get to the surface as soon as I can. There have already been too many delays." Frisk pleaded. "Please Flowey I-I have someone I need to get back to."

Flowey looked torn, but finally he nodded. "Alright. But we can't make a sound!"

"This could go very bad very quickly." Chara warned.

Frisk shook her head. "I know. Thank you."

Flowey weaved his way around Frisk's neck, pulling the hood up so it covered him as he did so. "Let's get going then!"

"Yeah!" Frisk grinned and started walking.

Chara walked with them, looking doubtful. Frisk sent her a reassuring smile and reached out for her hand again. Chara blinked in surprise as she was pulled along as Frisk sped up the pace. As they ran Frisk kept a determined smile plastered on her face.

_There's no way I'm going to let anything stop me from getting to the surface again. Hold on big sis, I'm coming!_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Heeeyyyyy everyone!  
> How you all doing? Hopefully you're all good, and if you're not; here have some hugs! *Holds out arms.*  
> Aaaaannny way how'd you like that chapter huh? *wiggles eyebrows.* I'm actually really happy with how this chapter turned out! I couldn't stop writing this once I started. :) Hopefully you all liked it too.   
> So what do you guys think is going to happen next? Will our heroes run into the skeleton brothers again? Will Frisk make friends with them if they do? Will having Chara there change anything? And the biggest question; is Chara really as kind and innocent as she seems?  
> All this and more will be answered in the future! But cookies to anyone who can figure it out before I post the next chapter. ;)  
> Thank you all for reading and showing this story some love, it really means the world to me.  
> See you in the next one!  
> ~Cupcakezys~


	26. Oh no.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> OH MY GOSH! I AM SO SO SORRY THIS TOOK SO LONG GUYS!  
> More on why later, I think I've kept you all waiting long enough. Without further ado, (finally) here's the next chapter.

This time when the little group reached the dense fog they stayed quiet. Chara, however, was free to talk all she wanted.

And talk she did.

“This is a bad idea. Are you sure about this? What if those skeletons see you again? Or some other monster? You’ll die again!” Frisk shrugs. “This is a bad idea. We should go back, wait until the fog clears.”

Frisk shook her head and mouthed ‘can’t.’

Chara huffed and walked ahead. Frisk stuck her tongue out at her and raced to catch up.

She wandered through the fog as slowly and quietly as possible. It was impossible to see very far in any direction, but Frisk had the strangest feeling that she had been in this exact spot before.

Frisk stumbles to a halt as dread swirls around in her stomach. She glanced around, trying to figure out what was wrong, but nothing was there. Just fog.

_Maybe it’s nothing? I could just be scared from last time I was here._ She continues on, ignoring her growing terror. _Yeah, yeah that must be it. There’s nothing here, not even those skeletons._

“Frisk?” Flowey popped his head out of the warmth of her coat and peered around. “This is close to where we were caught before.”

“It is?” Frisk whispered, her eyes going wide and darting around. “No wonder I feel so scared.”

“Just stay quiet and we’ll be fine.” He reassured, still scanning the dense fog. “Hopefully.”

Frisk nodded and stood as still as possible. Her senses are on high alert and the wind becomes a howling scream. Chara paces around, trying to find a good place to see any oncoming threats. Eventually she gives up, not able to see anything because of the fog.

What feels like five hours later, but was actually only five minutes, Frisk breathes out the breath she hadn’t even realised she’d been holding. “You think they’ve gone past us by now?”

“Maybe.” Flowey murmured.

Chara shrugged and moved to continue on to Waterfall. Frisk followed behind her, not wanting to lose her ghost friend to the fog. Barely three steps later Chara let out a startled shriek as a sharpened bone flies harmlessly through her and lands with a dull thump at Frisks’ feet.

_Oh no._

“WELL WELL WELL. WHAT DO WE HAVE HERE?”

_Oh no._

“h-heh. a human and her p-pet weed by t-the looks of th-things boss.”

Frisk didn’t hesitate. She clutched Flowey close, grabbed for Chara’s ghostly hand, and bolted.

Papyrus laughed behind the trio and Frisk was quickly forced to stop as giant bones erupted from the ground in front of her. For a second her mind flashes back to when she was last here, facing off against this skeleton.

Her hesitation cost her, and colour drains from the world as the brilliant red of her soul shines in front of her. Snapped from her memories she tries to move, however a force flings her back towards the skeletons. Frisk whimpers and tries to get to her feet, however something slams into her chest and she’s left curled up and barely able to breathe.

Flowey manages to wiggle free and pushes Frisk out of the way with some vines just before Papyrus can skewer her.

Frisk rolls into a standing position to see Flowey firmly planted between herself and the two skeletons. The sense of déjà vu was almost overwhelming.

_I can’t run._ The realisation hit her like a brick. _If I try to run I’ll die again, just like before. I have to stay, but what can I do? I don’t want to hurt anyone! It’s not right!_

Frisk glances at Chara, standing helplessly off to the side. Then her gaze flickers back to the battlefield. Frisk takes a deep breath and moves forward until she’s standing in front of Flowey.

Her flower friend looks up at her in confusion. “Frisk what are you-”

“Trust me.” She whispered with a tight smile.

She turns to the brothers, both looking at her in confusion and hatred so strong she shudders. She sucks in another breath before forcing herself to give a wobbly smile.

“Hello! My name is Frisk. Please, can we talk? I don’t want to fight you.”

She heard Flowey and Chara gasp in disbelief at what she was doing, and the two skeletons stared blankly at her. Frisks breathing stopped as a sharpened bone was flung at her. She quickly hopped to the side, barely managing to dodge in time.

Papyrus was glaring at her even harder than before. “FILTHY HUMAN. I WILL NOT FALL FOR YOUR LIES! NOW STAND AND FACE ME SO YOU MAY DIE WITH SOME HONOUR!”

Frisk was caught in a flurry of bones, and her life became nothing but dodging for what felt like hours. By the end of the tall skeleton’s attack she was gasping for air.

Frisk refused to give up so easily. “It… it’s not a trick I swear! Please, I just want to talk!”

Papyrus only smirked. “THERE IS NO TALKING DOWN HERE HUMAN. IT IS KILL OR BE KILLED, AND I REFUSE TO BE BESTED BY FILTH!”

Hundreds of bones were once again thrown at her and she did her best to dodge the deadly barrage. They continued this pattern, this dance, for a long time. Frisk was losing hope as fast as she was losing HP, as every word she said seemed to only anger the skeleton more.

Still, she was determined, she could make him listen, make him calm down she just had to keep pushing!

Flowey cries out from behind her and Frisk spins just in time to see a long, spear-like bone impale her through the soul. Darkness fills her vision and a shattering noise echoes in her ears before all at once she’s standing between two buttons.

Continue or Reset?

With a determined growl, Frisk slammed her hand on the Continue button.

…

Loading last Save Point.

*****

Frisk dropped to the snow-covered ground, her determination fading the more she tried to move. Flowey was in a similar condition. He was curled up in Frisk’s lap, his golden petals curled to cover his face. Chara was standing above them, her face oddly emotionless.

The two – plus one invisible human – had tried everything to make it past the skeleton brothers, only for Frisk to be killed every time. After around fifty failed attempts Flowey had convinced Frisk to stay with Grillby for at least a few hours. The blue flame had been surprised that the determined child was back so soon, however he had set the two up in a mostly hidden booth in the corner and brought them both chocolate milkshakes.

Chara hadn’t followed them into Grillby’s, for whatever reason, and Frisk was left wondering where she had gone. Maybe she was exploring? Being trapped in that Void, that nothingness for so long had to have been insanely boring. She shrugged it off, enjoying her milkshake and deciding she’d ask Chara later.

A few minutes past as the two tried to come up with new ways to get past the skeleton brothers. Flowey wanted Frisk to stay with Grillby while he scouted out the skeleton’s whereabouts. Frisk refused to let him go out on his own, but had no better alternative. They were so engrossed in their argument they didn’t notice someone had slammed the door open until it dawned on them that they’d never heard the bar this quiet.

Frisk remembered glancing at Flowey in worry, and then they both peeked out of their booth.

The bar was completely deserted, except for two figures slowly making their way to Grillby. Frisk easily recognised the skeletons. The flame himself was a deep blue, borderline purple, and Frisk wasn’t sure if he was angry or scared.

Grillby growled. “Sans. Papyrus. To what do I owe this… pleasure? I thought the Captain of the Royal Guard hated my bar.”

Papyrus’s sockets narrowed. “I DO. THE GREASE IS FUCKING DISGUSTING.” Grillby growled lowly again, and Frisk caught Sans roll his eye lights. “HOWEVER, WE ARE HERE ON OFFICIAL GUARD BUSINESS, SO I DO NOT HAVE ANY CHOICE ON THE MATTER.”

Grillby scoffed. “The Royal Guard Captain has no choice? What, the dogs not licking at the fucking ground you walk on anymore?”

Quick as a lightning bolt Papyrus grabbed Grillby by his top and hauled him almost completely over the counter. “YOU WOULD DO WELL TO REMEMBER YOUR PLACE OLD MAN.”

Grillby glowed bright purple and shoved Papyrus off him. “And you should remember yours, _child._ Now why is that you so rudely drove out all my customers?”

Papyrus glared, then smirked. “UNDYNE HAS INFORMED ME THAT ALPHYS PICKED UP SOMETHING… INTERESTING ON HER CAMERAS.”

“Oh no.” Flowey whispered. “Frisk, they know, we need to leave!”

Frisk had been frozen in place, watching as the taller skeleton smirked at their friend. She had sensed something, and looking around she spotted Sans staring right at her. Her breath caught as he turned to his brother.

“WHERE IS THE FUCKING HUMAN YOU TRAITOR?”

“boss-”

“Fuck off Papyrus. You think I would side with a human? Your skull is emptier than I thought.”

Papyrus looked like he was about to explode. “YOU FUCKING-!”

“boss!”

Papyrus pushed his brother away and his sockets filled with a deep red light. Sharpened bones surrounded him and in an instant the area behind Grillby was covered in blue-purple flames. Sans had backed away, hands held up in front of him.

“boss the human is right there!”

“Frisk!”

Frisk had ignored Flowey’s scream and dashed behind Grillby. From her vantage point in the booth she had been able to see the blood red, knife like bone form behind Grillby. She had immediately bolted, the only thought on her mind being to protect her friend.

They hadn’t gone back to Grillby’s after that.

“Frisk?” The young girl looked up at the ghost. “I think I have a plan.”

Frisk tilted her head. _What’s her plan? What haven’t we tried already?_

Chara smiled, but Frisk felt like something was off. “Trust me.”

Frisk smiled and stood up. She nodded and felt her determination rising once again.

“Frisk?” Flowey asked, barely looking up as his petals drooped in defeat.

“One more time. We can try one more time.” Frisk brought the golden flower in for a hug. “You with me Flowey?”

He thought for a moment before nodding. “Always.”

Frisk grinned and continued walking down the path that had so many times led to her death.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi guys!  
> Again, I'm so sorry this took so long. Life decided to be a bitch all at once and all inspiration and time fled out the window. Okay, so here's my rant. Feel free to skip to the end.  
> First it was announced my family was moving 6 hours and a plane ride away from the home we've stayed in all my life, and I was more than sad about it. Tried to fight and stay, but I'm not ready to live alone and the only family I had wouldn't take me in without my mothers permission (she did not give permission, as you can imagine.).  
> Then there were exams happening, and I got a new teacher that had absolutely no idea what she was doing, so yay for stress.   
> During all this my mother decides it the best time to up her insult game and as per usual I'm the test dummy.   
> Aaaaand then I eventually went to see someone because at this point I had no idea what to do. (Seriously, I wanted to stay so bad but despite everything I didn't want to hurt my mothers feelings and ugh. It was one big shit show.) She basically said to me that my mum wasn't giving me permission to live with my nan and the best thing I could do was prepare myself for the move.   
> Broke my heart, and all my friends' and my girlfriends' too, but there wasn't anything else we could do. I'd tried and I'd failed.   
> Anyway, so we moved at the start of 2017, and life isn't too bad. It's much hotter here, and the school system is a bit to get used to, but meh.   
> I'm visiting home again in two weeks during our term holidays so I'm super excited!  
> Okay RANT OVER!  
> So, yeah amongst all that my passion for writing kinda fizzled out. BUT! Like I've said, I don't ever give up my fics, even if I take forever to write chapters.   
> Anyway, hope you enjoyed, I've got a fever right now so expect chapters to be coming out faster.   
> Also! I have a new undertale fic in the work I think you'll all enjoy. *Wink wink* Not going to be out for a while tho!  
> AAnnd lastly if you want to check out what I was writing with what little motivation I had, please check this out;   
> http://archiveofourown.org/works/10507740  
> It's an original work of mine, and I know it won't get much notice, but I am really proud of it and am eager to see what people think of it. Please if you have the time just go check it out, it's all finished so there will be daily updates until everything's posted.   
> Phew, okay that was pretty long. Kudos to you if you read through it all. Once again I'm sorry for taking so long, life just kinda kicked me into a deep dark ditch for a few months and I'm still climbing out of it.   
> Love you all, thanks for your support and tanks for reading!  
> ~Cupcakezys.~


	27. Face to Face With Your Sins.

Frisk was barely keeping herself together as the world reformed around her. Chara’s betrayal burned as harsh as the familiar freezing snow around her. The memory of what they had done together was seared into her brain, the fight, the dust, Sans’s anguished cries, all of it. It played on repeat behind her closed eyelids as if trying to make sure she would never forget her sins.

A shiver ran up her back.

“Frisk! Are you okay? Did the plan not work?” Flowey’s voice broke through the thick fog that had surrounded her mind.

Frisk cracked her eyes open slowly, afraid that when she opened them she’d once again see the dust of the Captain. There was only Flowey, staring up at her in concern.

“I-I’m okay. The plan… th-the plan-” Frisk was cut off by her own sobs.

_I killed him. Chara may have been in control but I wanted to. Going into that fight I had every intention to kill him._ Frisk was disgusted with herself. _Never again. I won’t do anything like that ever again. Violence doesn’t solve problems, it only creates them._

She was determined to uphold that promise to herself, but her own doubts whispered in her mind. _I did it once, what’s to say I won’t do it again? No! I won’t! I refuse! But…_

Her thoughts chased each other around and around her head. She heard Flowey calling her name, and it was like she was drowning and Flowey had shown her the surface. She took heaving breaths, tears she didn’t even realise were falling freezing to her cheek in the cold. Flowey had several vines wrapped around her in his version of a hug. Frisk appreciated the comfort and hugged him back.

“Frisk… what’s wrong? What happened?” Flowey’s voice was nothing but concern.

Frisk couldn’t take it, more tears falling as she shook her head. “Flowey… I-I’m sorry, I’m so s-so sor-rry”

Flowey was utterly confused as to why she was crying, but he held her close and tried his best to comfort his friend. It took a few minutes but finally Frisk calmed down. Her balling sobs turned to sniffles and her broken apologies stopped.

Flowey pet her hair with a vine in what he hoped was a soothing manner. “Frisk, please. Why are you so upset? Why are you sorry?”

For a second Frisk looked like she might once again burst into tears but instead she dropped her head to her knees and curled her arms around her legs. She refused to look up as she answered.

Flowey leaned forward, not wanting to miss any of the girls’ muffled words. “I-I killed him Flowey. I was so scared, and so frustrated, and so angry! Th-that skeleton has killed me so many times, and he’s killed you just as many, hasn’t he?”

The golden flower’s silence said everything Frisk needed to know. After she was killed, so too was her friend.

“And those times we avoided him he killed Grillby! And if there are cameras that means he knows about Toriel, and he probably would kill her too. I just… I wanted to keep you all safe.”

Frisk started crying again, shame and self-hatred burning through her soul. To her utter surprise Flowey pulled her into another hug. She about burst with relief at the knowledge that her friend neither hated nor feared her.

“I didn’t… I wanted to stop, I did, but I just… I couldn’t. I’m sorry, oh god I’m terrible-”

“Hey.” Flowey interrupted her. “It’s okay. You’re okay. Papyrus is… alive. You don’t have to worry about that anymore. It never happened.”

His words were comforting, and the suffocating feeling in Frisk’s soul lessened slightly. “I don’t want to ever do anything like that again.”

“Then don’t.” Flowey said simply.

Frisk nodded and wiped the tears from her eyes. Her face was completely numb from the cold, but she didn’t care. It was unlikely she would live long enough in this timeline to be effected by it. Flowey nuzzled her cheek for a second before snuggling into the jacket. Frisk stood on shaky feet and once more faced the foggy road.

_I can do this. There has to be a way._

Determination fuelled her steps.

….

“WELL WELL WELL. WHAT DO WE HAVE HERE?”

All Frisk’s determination flew out the window as she heard those words for what felt like the millionth time. The silence was stifling.

_Sans didn’t say his usual lines._ He was just staring at her, his sockets like black pits. _He should be saying the same stuff as always. Nothing’s different from before. Why would he… he remembers. He remembers when I Load. It’s the only explanation._

She chocked on a sob and the world turned blurry through her tears. Guilt and regret stabbed deep into her soul, and before she even knew what she was doing she was flying towards the skeletons. She wrapped her arms around Papyrus’s legs, and sobbed out apology after apology as the two monsters stood frozen in shock.

Frisk wasn’t surprised when she was shoved back into the snow. She landed hard on her back, and simply laid there for a moment before sitting up.

Papyrus was staring at her with the same anger as always in his sockets, but there was confusion there too. His hands were held out as if to protect him and his brother from any more hug attacks.

Sans himself was half hiding behind his brother, eye lights flickering on and off. Finally they settled and red eye lights focused on the small human’s form.

Frisk had calmed down a little, though tears still streamed silently down her face. She was attempting to wipe them away, however they fell faster than she could dry them. Flowey seemed caught between glaring at the skeletons and trying to comfort his friend.

Frisk rubbed her eyes to get rid of her tears, and when she looked up next Papyrus is pointing a giant bone at her face. Flowey hissed lowly, ready to strike if Papyrus showed even the slightest form of aggression.

They were all silent, the only sound the cold wind picking up as the fog slowly began to disappear.

Papyrus was the one to end the silence. “WHAT THE FUCK WAS THAT?”

Frisk swallowed nervously. “Uh… a hug?”

Frisk got the distinct feeling he was rolling his eyes. “I KNOW WHAT A HUG IS HUMAN. I WANT TO KNOW WHY YOU HUGGED _ME,_ AND WHY YOU ARE SNIVELLING SO MUCH.”

Tears threatened to fall once again at the reminder of what she hadn’t technically done. “I-I’m sorry! I didn’t want to I swear! I just wanted to protect everyone…”

Papyrus got a weird look on his skull. “PROTECT EVERYONE?”

Frisk nods. She settles on the snow, completely ignoring the biting cold. Flowey was still hissing and glaring, so Frisk hugged and soothed the yellow plant in an effort to calm him down. They had never made it this far without being attacked before, and if she was killed again they would just be right back where they’d started.

Flowey settled in her arms, though he still sent the skeletons a glare every few seconds. “I wanted to protect my friends. They helped me so much and I didn’t want them to be hurt because of me.”

Papyrus stared at her for a long time before lowering the bone. “WHAT FRIENDS? NO ONE IS _FRIENDS_ DOWN HERE.”

“That’s what I said.” Flowey mumbled.

Frisk pet his head and shook her head at them. “That’s what _everyone_ keeps saying, but it’s not true! There are plenty of people you can be friends with.”

Papyrus was staring down at her like she was a mad woman speaking another language. Sans was eyeing her with suspicion, but there was also understanding.

_Perhaps he has a friend somewhere down here?_

Frisk tilted her head. “Don’t you have any friends?”

Papyrus scoffed and the bone disappeared as he crossed his arms. “I HAVE _ALLIES_ HUMAN. IT IS NOT THE SAME.”

Frisk huffed and nibbled on her lip in thought. “What about your brother?”

Sans stiffened and stared up at his brother. Papyrus shifted more in front of the smaller skeleton, as if to hide him from view.

“HE’S MY BROTHER. IT’S DIFFERENT.” He insisted.

Frisk shook her head. “No it’s not! My sister is my best friend.”

Papyrus lunged forward and pulled Frisk up from the floor. The human and flower squeaked in surprise, and immediately tried to wiggle free. To their combined surprise the Captain let go.

Flowey recovered first, hissing and glaring. “What did you do that for?”

“AS THE CAPTAIN OF THE ROYAL GUARD IT IS MY DUTY TO CAPTURE HUMAN SOULS AND DELIVER THEM TO KING ASGORE!” Both children tensed as he grabbed Frisk once more by the arm and whispered; “I THOUGHT YOU MAY WANT TO MOVE THIS CONVERSATION SOMEWHERE MORE… PRIVATE.”

Frisk nodded and Flowey settled, though he still looked grumpy. She allowed herself to be dragged back towards Snowdin, giant skeleton on her left and smaller skeleton on her right. Flowey was watching both brothers intently, ready for them to attack, and Frisk was prepared to dodge any bones flung her way.

As they passed the save point Frisk had Loaded from so many times, she was struck with a earth shattering realisation. _We got past the fight. After so many times… we did it! Something new is finally happening!_

She felt the familiar rush of determination run through her body and stretched her hand out so she could touch the glowing light.

Frisk looked up when Papyrus stopped dragging her and let her go. Almost instantly a smaller skeletal hand wrapped tightly around her right wrist. Sans was staring intently at his brother, sweat rolling down his skull and eye lights pointedly turned away from the little human.

There was a click of a door open and Frisk had just enough time to realise this was the worn-down house she had noticed all those timelines ago before she was shoved inside.

Sans shut the door behind him and Papyrus gestured grandly to the house behind him, as if it were the most impressive thing in the world. “WELCOME HUMAN, TO THE GREAT AND TERRIBLE PAPYRUS’S HOUSE!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Things are finally moving forward! Whooo!  
> What could Papyrus possibly want to talk about? Why didn't he take Frisk's soul, like all the countless times before? Find out next chapter!  
> ... Which won't be out until the 20th, I'm afraid. I'm taking a trip back home, and there is no internet there, which means no way for me to update. After that it'll be back to weekly (maybe more) updates!  
> Also, just thought I'd say, last chapter I mentioned an original story I was posting. I'm happy to say it's all posted, and waiting to be read! Personally I think it is one of the best things I've written, so if you have the free time please go check it out. It's only 9 short chapters and I'd love some feedback on what you guys think.   
> Here's the link to it:   
> http://archiveofourown.org/works/10507740  
> That's the last time I'll be mentioning it, promise!   
> Anyway, as usual I hope you all enjoyed!   
> ~Cupcakezys~


	28. A Plan Is Made And A Friend Is Gained.

The living room was sparse, with a lumpy red couch pushed against one wall, a TV on the opposite wall. Stairs led up to two closed doors, though Frisk could only barely see them. The remains of a coffee table was near a door leading to a sparkling clean kitchen. Frisk moved to explore more when a cough brought her back to reality.  
Papyrus seemed to be watching her every move intensely. “HUMAN. I HAVE BROUGHT YOU HERE BECAUSE I BELIEVE YOU MAY BE OF USE TO US, AND WHAT I WANTED TO DISCUSS IS… A PRIVATE MATTER.”  
Flowey flared up between them and hissed warningly at the skeleton. “She may be of use to you? How? The only way humans are of use to monsters is if their soul is captured for the breaking of the barrier, and I won’t let you hurt her!”  
Papyrus glared, and Flowey glared back with only the smallest flinch giving away his fear. The atmosphere turned unbearably tense as the two stared at each other. Frisk was ready to turn and run if she needed to, when Papyrus broke the tension by nodding.  
“I ASSURE YOU WE ONLY WISH TO TALK. THERE IS SOMETHING I HAVE BEEN TRYING TO DO FOR YEARS NOW, AND I BELIEVE YOU MAY BE ABLE TO HELP.” The tall skeleton explained.  
Frisk bit her lip in thought, then hesitantly looked him in the eyes. “What is it?”  
Papyrus gestured to the couch, where Sans was doing his best to melt into the red cushions.  
Frisk stared at him. _Wait when did he…? Wasn’t he behind me?_  
He looked uncomfortable, and Frisk suddenly remembered the jacket she was wearing. It was undoubtedly his, and while it was incredibly warm Frisk knew she had to give it back.  
“Mr Sans?” He flinched as she stood in front of him and shrugged the jacket off. “I think this is yours?”  
Sans’s red eye lights flickered from Frisk to his jacket and then to his brother. The two skeletons seem to have a conversation entirely with their eyes as Frisk stood patiently with her arms out. Finally Sans reached forward and grabbed his jacket.  
Frisk smiled and sat down on the opposite side of the couch. “So what is it you think I can help with Mr Papyrus?”  
Papyrus stood in front of the couch, a very serious look on his face. “I WANT YOU TO… HELP BRING THE GUARD BACK TO ITS FORMER GLORY.”  
*****  
“I really don’t know about this.” Flowey mumbled. “We don’t have to do this you know.”  
“I want to.” Frisk insists. “Papyrus made some good points.”  
“Good points on how screwed up the guard really is!”  
Frisk avoided his gaze and instead focused on their snowy surroundings. “That’s not what I meant Flowey.”  
Flowey sighed. “I know, I’m sorry. It’s just… he wants us to go to **_Undyne_**! As in, ** _Former Captain of the Royal Guard Undyne!_** ”  
“He only wants us to distract her while he rounds up the Canine Unit.”  
“It’s **_Undyne_** Frisk! She’s worse than Papyrus! The only reason he beat her is because her high LV has driven her half insane.” Flowey looked ready to explode.  
Frisk stopped moving and focused on the flower wrapped around her arm. The snow was bitterly cold, and they really should keep moving, but she wanted to make sure Flowey was on board with this. He slid down to her outstretched hands and continued to grumble. Her friend was very clearly not happy, and while Frisk was convinced this was what they should do she didn’t want to force Flowey into anything.  
“What do you think we should do then?” She asked.  
“Sneak past her! Let Papyrus handle her!”  
“He can’t! He already told us that. And you said yourself he was barely strong enough to defeat her the first time.” Frisk argued.  
Flowey frowned. “Why should we care anyway? What does it matter to us if the guard is ‘restored’ to some fairy tale version of itself?”  
“Because they can help us! And because it’s the right thing to do. Papyrus was right when he said the Royal Guard should protect people instead of terrorising them.”  
Flowey grumbled. “But that’s the way the guard has been for ages. Asgore stopped caring and so did everyone else, and then the guard was free to basically do what they wanted so long as it didn’t upset the King.”  
“Well then it’s time for a change, don’t you think?” Flowey still didn’t look convinced, so she pressed on. “If something can change once, it can changed again. Papyrus has been working hard for this, and now all that stands in his way is Undyne. If we can distract her long enough for him to talk to the King and convince him to sign the new guard rules then it will help everybody!”  
“We aren’t responsible for everyone Frisk.” Flowey said, so quietly it was basically a whisper.  
“I know.” Frisk said, just as quiet. “But I want to help.”  
Frisk was pleading with her eyes for her friend to give her this chance. She really, truly wanted to help. Plus, this would get most the Royal Guard on their side! It seemed like everyone would benefit from this.  
“I still don’t like this. Undyne is crazy powerful you know, and crazy to boot!” Flowey warned, but Frisk could tell he was willing to give this a shot now.  
She brought him close to her and nuzzled him. “Thank you. I believe that we can do this.”  
Flowey huffed and moved back around her arm. “I hope you’re right.”  
*****  
Water dripped down from the ceiling, sounding like a mixture of rain and music. It was much warmer here, which Frisk was glad for. Without the big, fluffy jacket protecting her from the cold it had become freezing, almost to the point where she didn’t feel the cold anymore.  
 _I’m not exactly an expert, but I’m pretty sure being warm when you’re freezing is a bad thing. Still, I’m warm now._ She looked around and sighed. _This new place is dark, and most people probably think it’s scary, but I love it._  
“Welcome to Waterfall.” Flowey murmured.  
“It’s beautiful.” Frisk breathed out.  
The rocks that made up the floor, walls, and ceiling were all a soft purple colour. Dark, murky water formed pools and, yes, waterfalls, off the edge of a great cliff. Frisk found no matter how hard she listened she couldn’t hear the splash of the falling water hit the ground.  
Frisk gulped and backed away from the edge. _Maybe it would be best if I don’t stand next to a cliff where I could potentially fall to my death._  
The best part of all, at least to Frisk, was the many glowing blue stones high in the ceiling. If she squinted she could almost believe they were real stars. They bathed everything in a relaxing blue light.  
 _It’s like I’m on another planet, rather than underground. I can’t believe anyone could be violent here, it’s so calm and peaceful._  
“Come on.” Flowey nudged her, and remembering their mission, she quickly started moving. “Waterfall may be beautiful, but it’s also the most dangerous place in the Underground. Not many monsters live here, cause of all the dark passages. Anyone could take you by surprise.”  
He looked around fearfully as he spoke, as if he thought he might have jinxed them and they were about to be jumped. Frisk patted his head in comfort as another sentry station came into view. It was identical to the one she had seen as she exited the Ruins. In fact, Frisk was almost convinced it _was_ the same station. It even had snow on top!  
She pointed it out to Flowey, and the little flower gave her his version of a shrug. “It’s magic, who knows. Maybe it is the same one.”  
Frisk walked closer, wondering if she could find anything to prove they were the same. Flowey may be able to accept magic as the explanation, but she had to know the truth!  
“Yo, I wouldn’t mess with that if I were you. Sans gets all huffy about it, and the last time I stole one of his stupid ketchup bottles he threatened to get Captain Papyrus to dust my ass.”  
Frisk _screams_ and spins around so fast she nearly falls over. Glowing white pellets surround them as Flowey panics less audibly than his human friend. Frisk brought a hand up to her pounding heart and the other to her head in an attempt to calm both down. The world stopped spinning after a few seconds and Frisk was finally able to see who had spoken.  
A monster about her height stood at the entrance to Waterfall. They are a pale-yellow colour, with little brown spike that Frisk can see run down their back. had a striped red and black top on, and red pants. Their little tail was swishing back and forth, and Frisk was reminded of the puppies her neighbour had once had. Then she noticed something odd about this monster. She found herself staring, and in return the monster glared.  
“What the fuck you staring at?” They growled. “Think I can’t take you on ‘cause I don’t have any arms?”  
“No!” Frisk stepped back and hurriedly shook her head. “You look pretty strong to me.”  
They blink and stand up a little taller, puffing their chest out at the same time. “That’s ‘cause I am strong! I’m so strong, one day I’ll be Captain of the Royal Guard, and no one will dare try and mess with me!”  
Frisk grinned and gave them a thumbs up. Flowey got rid of the pellets surrounding them.  
The monster seemed to think for a moment before nodding to themself. “You’re wearing a striped top. That means you’re a kid too right?”  
Frisk glanced down at her sweater. _How does wearing a striped top automatically make me a kid?_  
Regardless, she nodded. “Yup!”  
They rock on their heels. “You aren’t from Snowdin are you? There aren’t many kids there, and I know ‘em all.” Frisk shook her head and the monster nodded. “So, where are you from?”  
“New Home.” Frisk blurts, unable to think of anywhere else. “I wanted to see what Snowdin was like.”  
“Dude really? That’s so cool!”  Their eyes seemed to sparkle, then they shake their head and glare. “I mean… Snowdin was probably too boring for you, huh?”  
Frisk shrugged. “Not really, I thought it was pretty cool.”  
The monster snickered, then tried to pretend they hadn’t. “Nice one.”  
 _What does he mean… Oh! It was a pun!_  
Frisk giggled. “My name’s Frisk, and my friend here is Flowey.”  
Flowey shifted under the other monsters’ gaze. He seemed uncomfortable, and it suddenly struck Frisk how he hadn’t spoken a word this entire time.  
 _Is he scared? No, that doesn’t sound right. Maybe… he just doesn’t trust them. But they don’t seem that bad, and they’re just a kid!_  
“I’m MK.” They paused, considered something, and then looked up at Frisk. “Wanna be allies?”  
 _Allies? Do they mean friends?_  
Frisk wanted to ask, but Flowey looked uncomfortable, so she figured she’d better wrap this up. “Alright. Let’s be allies!”  
“Cool dude! And don’t even think of betraying me, or I’ll have to dust you!” Frisk quickly promised she wouldn’t and MK nodded, satisfied, and then ran past the two, deeper into Waterfall. “I’ll catch you later, I’m gunna be late otherwise.”  
They disappeared into the dark caverns of Waterfall, and Frisk and Flowey were left staring after them.  
“What just happened?” Flowey asked.  
“I have no idea.” Frisk shook her head and smiled. “But I think we just made a new friend.”  
A golden glow caught her attention and she noticed for the first time a Save Star, as she had taken to calling them, next to the sentry station. She quickly ran over and ran her hands through it, wanting to make sure this would have all still happened if she died.  
A big blue flower was laying uprooted on the ground next to the Save Star, glowing a faint, dying blue. Frisk crouched down and smoothed out its crumpled petals.  
“Poor thing.” She murmured.  
“Poor thing…” The flower said faintly.  
Frisk leapt back with a small yelp. “It talked!”  
Flowey burst into laughter. Frisk pouted and poked his little golden petals. She studied the plant a bit more, and decided that it wasn’t alive. That still left the question of how it talked though.  
“i-it’s an echo fl-flower kid.”  
Frisk jumped and tried to turn at the same time, resulting in her falling to the ground. Flowey had stopped laughing and was instead glaring at the skeleton that was grinning down at them. He was sitting down at the sentry station, with his chin in his hand as he leaned on the little desk.  
“How do you do that?” Frisk asked and pushed herself to her feet. “You weren’t there a second ago and now you’re there! How?”  
Sans, while obviously nervous, winks. “m-magic k-kiddo.”  
Frisk groaned. “That’s not an answer!”  
Sans shrugged. “m-magic is always the answer do-down here kiddo.”  
Frisk grumbled, but perked back up when Flowey spoke. “What are you doing here anyway Smiley?”  
Sans’s grin twitched at the name, but he shrugged easily. “This is my station. I’m working.”  
“Oh.” It was clear Flowey wasn’t expecting that answer, because he blinked and settled down again.  
Frisk glanced back down at the uprooted flower. “You said it was an echo flower?”  
“y-yup. it re-repeats back the last th-thing it heard. l-looks like this one h-had a bad time.” He grinned wider and chuckled. “it n-needs to b-be brought back t-to its roots.”  
Frisk laughed at the pun while Flowey huffed in her ear. Sans seemed to relax as she laughed, though he was still alert. His eye lights seemed to be constantly scanning the area, the same as Flowey always did.  
 _Is it really so common for monsters to attack others just like that?_ The thought of constantly having to look over her shoulder so she don’t get jumped is a sad one.  
Frisk tried to force her thoughts elsewhere. “While it was funny, you’re right too. Flowey, can you help me?”  
Flowey cocked his head. “Help you what?”  
Frisk got on her knees and lifted the echo flower up. It was bigger than it looked laying down, and heavier than she expected. Frisk almost dropped it, but managed to hold on.  
“Re-plant it silly!” Frisk’s voice was a little strained. “Can you dig a little hole for it please?”  
Flowey nodded and several vines sprung up from the ground. They twisted together for a moment before returning under the ground, leaving the perfect hole in their wake.  
“Perfect.” Frisk mumbled, lining it up and carefully planting it.  
The vines re-appeared and filled in the hole before disappearing for good. When Frisk let go the echo flower stood on its own. Frisk cheered and brushed the dirt onto her trousers. When she turned Sans was giving her a weird look.  
She raised her eyebrows. “What?”  
“no-nothing.” He quickly looked away. “y-you should g-get going kid. you’ll b-be late if you h-hang around gawking li-like this.”  
Frisk stood a little taller at the reminder of her mission. “Right.” She started walking further into Waterfall, the same way MK had gone before. She turned and waved. “See you later Mr Sans.”  
Sans wasn’t looking at her though. He had his head buried in his arms, and looked like he was taking a nap.  
 _I wonder what he dreams about?_ The memory of his brother turning to dust right in front of her caused her to jerk as if struck. Flowey started to ask what was wrong and she assured him it was nothing.   _I really should have asked him if he remembered, but then if he did why didn’t he ask me just now?_  
Frisk did her best to ignore the ball of unease growing in her stomach as she continued on.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Gah, take it and go!  
> Sorry for the delay in this chapter, it was a bitch and a half to write. Nothing was coming at all, and I re-wrote and re-worked it quite a few times before a huge pile of inspiration whacked me in the brain and I spat this out. It's now 11 at night and I have school for the first time in three weeks (three cheers for term holidays!). This means getting up at 7 instead of 10, which means tomorrow is going to suuuuuck!  
> Finally we're in Waterfall! And Papyrus's plans were hopefully revealed. I can clear anything up if you're confused. I think UF Paps is still kinda hopeful for a better future, and his ideas to make the guard protectors instead of asshole bullies was pretty much the entire reason he challenged Undyne.   
> Anyway, I'm going to go pass out before hell claims me once again tomorrow. Bye!  
> ~Cupcakezys~


	29. Enter Undyne!

The first thing Frisk notices about the path she’s following was how it suddenly ends. Loud, rushing water echoes around the room, with the occasional splash as a rock falls from somewhere up above. The remains of what looks like a wooden walkway splinter off into nothing on her right.

_I wonder what used to be over there?_ Frisk got as close as she dared to the edge, trying to see where it could have lead. _Nothing but darkness. Guess the only way ahead is through the waterfall._

“Be careful Frisk.” Flowey warns as she approaches the rushing water. “We don’t know how strong this is. You don’t want to get swept over the edge.”

Frisk gulps and nods, eyeing the rushing water with newfound distrust. It would no doubt be a long fall, and while she knew she could just Load after dying it didn’t make the experience any less painful. Gingerly she sticks one foot in. The water is surprisingly shallow and warm, and the rushing is more like a gentle tug on her leg.

She steps fully into the water, enjoying the warmth around her ankles. The rocks were easy enough to dodge, and they barely made any splash in the shallow water.

“It’s really warm!” She informs Flowey as she bends down to submerge her hands. “It’s so nice. You should try it Flowey!”

“Are you sure it’s safe?” He asks, even as he extends a vine downwards.

Frisk simply hums. She giggles when Flowey sighs as the water warms him. The flower practically melts into the water, with Frisk holding his head just above the surface.

There’s a rustling sound behind Frisk. As she turns to look warm water is splashed all over her. She splutters and catches a glimpse of a few vines disappearing under the water. There’s a high-pitched laugh from behind her, and she feels a grin stretch across her face.

Flowey’s _still_ laughing as she makes her way over to where he had retreated and picks him up. “The look on your face! You should have seen it!”

Frisk giggles along with him, and then is struck with an idea on how to get revenge. The waterfall! It was prefect. She makes her way over slowly, trying not to let her friend catch on to what she is doing. By the time Flowey figures out what she’s doing it’s too late! He’s thrust under the rushing water. A few seconds later he is drawn out to come face to face with a laughing Frisk. Flowey splutters and laughs too.

It felt good to have a laugh again. It felt good to mess around like this again. _After all, it doesn’t seem like many people ever have fun down here. The last time I felt this happy was before those people…_ Frisk grimaces and decides to stop that thought before it can finish itself. _It’ll be fine. I’ll be fine, and Sis will be fine._

“Hey Frisk?” Flowey’s voice thankfully draws her out of her head. “I think there’s something behind the waterfall.”

Frisk feels her chest grow with excitement and curiosity. “Really?”

She wanders over to the rushing water. It was hard to see, but Frisk did catch a glimpse of a cave behind the waterfall. Frisk ducked her head and ran through the water. She giggles and splutters as water drips from her hair into her mouth. Flowey shakes his petals, much like a dog, and water sprays everywhere.

“Flowey!” Frisk complains.

Flowey gives her a cheeky smile. Frisk sticks her tongue out at him in return. It’s then that she notices an old, torn tutu on the ground. Small, star patterns ran around the edge of the dark blue fabric, giving the illusion of a night sky. It’s surprisingly dry, and despite the tear it still looks good. Frisk bends down and pulls it on.

Flowey slips down to the ground and Frisk gives an experimental turn in her new tutu. “How do I look?”

Flowey giggles. “Like a professional ballerina.”

Frisk gives a little curtsy and Flowey winds his way back up her arm. The two jump back through the waterfall, and Flowey uses a few vines as an umbrella so they didn’t get any more drenched. Frisk presses on, moving past the waterfall and into another area.

It isn’t as bright here. The only light in this cave is the light spilling in from the waterfall behind them. Not only that, there seems to be a path running a little higher above the path the two children were on, casting them even further into darkness. From what Frisk can see there is a patch of dead, brown grass in front of her. Flowey eyes it nervously, and whispers something about a possible ambush.

Frisk crouches down to let him go check it out, and glances up at the higher path again. She nearly screams, but manages to hold her tongue. Frisk grabs Flowey, making sure to cover his mouth so he doesn’t accidently give them away, and dives into the dead grass. It’s drooping, but just tall enough to cover her head.

Frisk lets go of Flowey’s mouth and brings a finger to her lips. The angry expression on the little flower’s face turns to fear. He nods to show he understands, and Frisk points up the path above them.

It was so dark, it was easy to see how they had missed her when they first scanned the room. The fact that her armour was as black as night and blended in with the walls didn’t help either. It was a miracle she hadn’t seen or heard them, though it helped that she was facing away from where they were.

The sound of loud, echoing stomps fill the cave. The children tense, only to relax when the approaching figure turns out to be Papyrus. The tall skeleton glared at the other monster until she shifted and knelt at his feet.

“REPORT!” Papyrus growled.

Whatever the other monster said was too quiet for Frisk to hear. She was too busy panicking to pay much attention anyway. _Oh no! We’re late! We were supposed to have met up with Sans by now._

“ENOUGH! I DON’T WANT TO HEAR YOUR STUPID FUCKING EXCUSES!” Papyrus takes a breath, before launching right into his lecture. “I SENT YOU A FUCKING HUMAN AND YOUR ESCORT NEVER ARRIVED! NOW THERE’S A FUCKING HUMAN ROAMING THE UNDERGROUND, AND YOU HAD BETTER FUCKING FIND THEM BEFORE ANYONE ELSE TAKES THEIR SOUL TO THE KING. WHAT THE FUCK DO YOU THINK WOULD HAPPEN TO THE GUARDS REPUTATION IF SOME LOW-LIFE PEASANT GOT THEIR HANDS ON THAT HUMAN?”

The armoured figure bows her head even more. She spoke, once again too low for Frisk to hear, however she assumes it was an apology. It was an apology without meaning though, as even from where she hid Frisk could feel the barely contained anger radiating off the guard.

Papyrus huffed. “JUST FIND THEM. WE CANNOT AFFORD TO LOSE THE POWER WE HAVE. IT WOULD SPELL DISASTER FOR US.”

The figure stands, her right arm on her chest in a salute. Papyrus turns and stomps back the way he’d came from. As soon as the Capitan is out of sight Undyne lets loose a low growl. Frisk shifts lower, trying to hide even more amongst the grass.

The angry Royal Guard immediately rounded on their hiding spot. Frisk freezes and Flowey tenses in her arms. Where he once would have cowered, he now looked ready to fight anyone that showed any violent intent. Frisk was kind of proud of how far he had come from the scared flower she had first met.

A red-blue spear lit Undyne in a hellish light. Frisk goes still, her heart beating a mile a minute. She forces herself to stay quiet, and after what feels like an eternity the red spear disappears. Undyne backs away and fades into the darkness. The two children sigh in relief and Frisk shuffles her way out of the dead grass. A Save Star glows ahead, and Frisk makes her way towards it with a sense of relief.

There’s a small rustle behind her. “YO!”

Frisk manages to only flinch, rather than jump through the cave roof, at the loud voice right behind her. She turns and finds herself face to face with MK. She greets the young monster, who can’t seem to stand still. Their little feet make little pats on the damp ground as they excitedly hop up and down on the spot.

“Did you see that? The Captain of the Royal Guard AND his Second in Command! I’m so glad I wasn’t late.” They bare their fangs in a grin. “They’re both so cool! One day, I’ll be so strong that I’ll take the title of Commander myself!”

He strikes a heroic pose and Frisk applauds. Flowey is uncomfortable again, however he gives the little monster his best encouraging smile. MK laughs proudly.

“C’mon, let’s go watch the Second beat up some guys!” Their little tail shakes with glee as they run ahead. “Maybe we’ll even get to see her kill the human!”

Frisk shudders as her ‘ally’ disappears from sight. _This could all go very wrong, very fast, if they find out I’m human._

Flowey voices her concerns, however she assures him that MK most likely wouldn’t find out. Even if they did, Frisk wanted to have confidence that their friend would be on her side.

Frisk takes a deep breath and runs her hand through the Save Star. She’s scared, but determined. There were so many people counting on her now, there was no way she could give up.

Her brows draw together, her face showing her determination. She walks past the Save Star and into the next cave.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys!  
> Back again with another chapter. Sorry this one took a little longer, again. School's an ass with it's tests and homework.  
> Hope you like this one! Finally we got some Undyne on the scene. Let's hope for some interaction next chapter! Or maybe not, poor Frisk really doesn't want to die again.  
> Here's to hoping the next chapter is out faster!   
> Thank you all for reading, liking and commenting, it means a lot to me. :)  
> ~Cupcakezys~


	30. A Small Wish.

Waterfall only got increasingly beautiful the further Frisk and Flowey travelled. Every room glowed with a soft, calming blue light. Stones twinkled high in the ceiling, mirroring the look of real stars. Shadows clung to the edges of each room, but they were never dark enough for anyone to be hiding in. The constant rush of water all around Frisk soothed her worries, and for just a little while she could just relax and take comfort in her surroundings.

Frisk stumbles to a halt, staring around the newest cave the children had entered. “What happened here?”

Flowey sighs, sadly eyeing the all but destroyed room. “Monsters happened.”

What was once perhaps called the most beautiful cave in Waterfall had been reduced to rubble. The walls and floors all had deep marks in them, some like claws and others like blades or spears. Dead, shrivelled echo flowers littered the floor, their blue glow drained to black. A half-destroyed mound of a metal something lay next to one of the walls. The lights above glittered dimly, like they were doing their best to hide the disaster below them.

Frisk gingerly steps fully into the room. “Monsters did all this? It looks like a war zone!”

Flowey nods solemnly. “The capital is worse. Almost every building has some mark of battle on it. Some are barely even standing. You can’t even walk down the street without someone attacking you.”

Frisk hums, slightly scared by the new information. _Is it really that bad? It sounds terrible!_

Something on the wall catches her attention, distracting her from anymore terrible thoughts. A sign in front of her is ripped to pieces. Frisk is barely able to make out ‘Wish’ and something she thinks is meant to say room.

_A wishing room?_ She wanders around the area, inspecting the deep marks littered everywhere. _Whoever did this, I really don’t want to meet them._

She moves on, hovering over the pile of smashed up metal. A long tube is the only thing left intact, and even then it’s horribly scratched and beaten up.

Frisk gasps in recognition. “It’s a telescope!”

“ _Was_ a telescope.” Flowey mutters.

“We can fix it!” Frisk exclaims, determined. “We can fix this whole place!”

“Frisk!” Flowey shakes his head. “We’re already behind schedule. Do you want to be even more late?”

Frisk bites her lip. “We can be quick, and Papyrus didn’t give us an exact time.”

Flowey grumbles something about foolish, determined humans. Frisk grins and quickly gathers the pieces of the metal stand that wasn’t completely ruined and unusable. With the help of a few vines the two children get the telescope standing again. A quick peek through the lens reveals it works! Frisk cheers a little, but her work isn’t done. Turning around she surveys the rest of the room.

The echo flowers were beyond saving. They had been uprooted so long they were barely anything more than dust. Frisk was disappointed, perhaps she wouldn’t be able to restore the Wishing Room after all.

Flowey extends a vine to one of the dead flowers. Frisk watches closely, curious as to what her friend was doing. When the vine draws back there are several small, blue pods. Flowey dumps them in his friend’s hands and sends a few vines to search the other dead flowers.

Frisk studies the things in her hands. “What are they?”

Flowey dumps more of the little pods into her hands. “Seeds.”

Frisk gasps, excitement quickly making her disappointment disappear. “Seriously? How did you know?”

Flowey gives his version of a shrug. “Someone taught me a lot about flowers, when he wasn’t too busy to pay me any attention.”

Frisk has a sneaking suspicion she knows who this someone is, but decides to stay quiet. If Flowey didn’t want to talk about it then she wasn’t going to force him.

Instead she decides to change the subject with a nod. “Let’s plant them!”

The two children make short work of replanting the seeds. Frisk proudly looks over the little mounds of dirt the seeds are buried under. To her surprise, only a few seconds later a strange light seems to bleed into the ground. Frisk watches, fascinated, as tiny blue echo flowers pop up out of the ground.

“Wow…” Frisk laughs. “They grow so fast!”

Flowey nods, then motions for them to move on. At the end of a short hallway lies a jagged crack in the wall, big enough for two Papyrus’s to walk through side by side with ease. Frisk starts towards the exit.

Suddenly a thought worms its way into her mind and she quickly rushes back to one of the smallest of the echo flowers, ignoring her companions’ confusion.

She leans as close as she can to the baby flower and whispers into it. Flowey looks at her with exasperation, but there’s fondness there too, so Frisk simply smiles. She then finally ventures out of the restored Wishing Room.

As the two children leave the star-like rocks above glow a little brighter. The telescope shines in the light, held upright by only a few vines and determination. Small, glowing echo flowers cast a calming blue light over the room. One echo flower in particular, the smallest of the bunch, whispered it’s wish for any who might pass by.

_I wish for your happiness, safety and most of all, I wish for you to always know you are loved._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Heyyyyy!  
> Sorry about the short (and late!) update, but school life has been kicking my butt! There has been next to no time for me to sit down and write, and when I did manage to I found myself working on a little something else. Hehe, someone needs to remind me never to write more than two stories at once, three is making me lose my mind!  
> Still, it's all good fun! I hope you guys enjoyed, and thanks for all the love you've been showing me throughout this adventure, it really means a lot!  
> ~Cupcakezys~


	31. Chapter 31

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Take it and go.

Smashed and glowing stone covers the wooden floor in front of Frisk. There are places on the wall where it looks like something was once hanging there, but was torn down long ago. Frisk bends down to get a closer look at the strange stone. The glow turns out to be writing, but it’s so smashed and faded she can barely see make anything out.

She squints and tilts her head, trying to figure out just what it said. “…War?”

Flowey curls down her arm and glares at the word. “The War of Humans and Monsters. This whole hall was dedicated to the tale, so it wouldn’t be forgotten. It wasn’t even up for a week before some monster tore it down in a fit of rage.” He pokes at the stone with a vine. “Since then, no one’s bothered to fix it.”

“How sad.” Frisk murmurs. “Can you remember what it said?”

Flowey nods. “Yeah, but it’s not a very nice tale.”

Frisk starts moving forward again. “I’d like to hear it anyway. It was put here to be remembered, right? Even if the stones are gone now their story can still be remembered through other ways.”

Flowey snorts humourlessly and glares at the stones for a long moment. His glare falls and he sighs. “I guess, if you want to hear it that much.”

“The War of Humans and Monsters. No one is truly sure what side started it, though it’s accepted that the humans made the first official attack. Many monsters were convinced this proved they started it, but I believe monsters attacked them first. It was just covered up to make the humans seem like the bad guys.”

Flowey sighs and looks up at the ceiling. “You see, the humans had nothing to fear. Monsters are vicious, yeah, but humans are way stronger. It would take the soul of every monster alive to equal the strength of just one human soul. Their bodies are also much stronger, since ours are made purely of dust and magic. It doesn’t make any sense for them to attack us first, they didn’t have any reason to.”

Frisk stops and stares at the murky water below. The wooden platform they’re on suddenly ends, and she isn’t sure what to do. _I’m sure this is the right direction._

Flowey points to a little square platform jutting out from the wood she’s standing on. Carefully she climbs on, and the square starts moving forward at a slow pace. In the distance Frisk can see more wooden platforms.

She leans over the side, but the water is too murky to see anything, Unnerved, she centres herself on the square and focuses on her flower friend.

Flowey curls up in her hands and continues. “It’s possible the humans were afraid because of what made them so strong in the first place. Their souls are so strong they can persist after death, and a monster can absorb it and become a God.”

Frisk shudders and clutches her heart, right over her soul.

Flowey’s quick to reassure her. “It’s okay! Not many monsters know that part. It’s why I don’t think the humans would attack over it, they wouldn’t even know. It was kept quiet, so no monster would take the power of a human soul for themself. The King would never have stayed in power so long if everyone knew.”

“That’s good, at least.” Frisk hugs Flowey closer. “Thank you for sharing. You were right though, it’s not very nice.”

Flowey sighs. “Not much to do with monsters ever is.”

The square platform stops as they reach the other side. Frisk can barely see ahead, it’s so dark. She can tell it’s like the room where she first saw Undyne though, with a lower wooden path and a higher rock one. Frisk is suddenly and explicitly filled with forbidding. Everything within her was screaming at her to not enter that room.

When she looks back, the moving platform that carried her is already long gone. _Guess there’s only one way to go._

Feeling like she was about to seal her fate, Frisk steps forward into the dark. Another step. And another. Something shifts on the rock path above her and Frisk breaks out into a sprint. Hellish red lights up the area as long, glowing red spears try to impale the fleeing human. The loud clang of armour echoes around the water filled cavern. Frisk knows who it is without looking.

“Look out!”

Frisk stops just in time as a spear whizzes past her face and into the murky water below. She starts running again, not allowing herself to rest. She can hear the stomping getting closer, can feel the magic as it fizzes hungrily for something to tear into. Something scrapes past Frisk’s arm, ripping her clothes but missing her skin.

Frisk keeps running, dodging spears as best she can. One slams down into the wooden platform right in front of her. The little human is forced to stumble to a stop, mere moments before she would have been impaled.

A taunting laugh echoes from behind the terrified children. Frisk whips around and her vision is filled completely with red. A barrage of spears fill the space behind her, all glowing a hellish red and crackling with murderous intent.

Frisk frantically scans for an opening, but within a second she knows it’s hopeless. _There’s no way I can dodge this, there are too many!_

Another second passes, and then the spears hurdle towards Frisk and Flowey so fast they become nothing but blurs.

Flowey hisses next to her ear and a vine shoots into the ground. Without thinking Frisk pulls Flowey to her chest and spins round so her back is to the incoming magic. She crouches down and does her best to shield her friend from certain death.

At almost the exact same time there’s a loud rumble, and a shriek of utter outrage. Frisk risks a reek up, confused as to why she isn’t dead. There’s another loud shriek and the sound of armoured feet hitting wooden platforms.

Flowey tugs at her top frantically. “Frisk, come on let’s go!”

Frisk scrambles forward along the floor until she’s running flat out once more. She glances back quickly, only to see a very pissed off set of armour slicing down a wall of vines.

Frisk’s eyes widen. “Flowey... that’s... _you’re_... amazing!”

“Yeah, thanks, now eyes forward! We have to hide before she starts chasing us again.” Flowey points a leaf at a giant patch of dead, brown grass that’s taller than Frisk and thick enough to disappear into. “Let’s hide in there!”

Frisk dives for the dead grass. She makes her way deep into the brown blades before stopping. She brings her hands to her mouth and tries to silence her harsh breathing. Flowey curls up around her arm and hides his face in Frisk’s neck.

Frisk nearly jumps out of her skin when a grinning face appears in front of her face. She has no idea how they managed to sneak up on her, the grass should be too noisy for it to be possible.

MK grins at Frisk, their body wiggling in excitement. They wiggle their way around her and their eyes immediately find Undyne. The Second in Command stomps up to the dead grass, boots clanking threateningly.

Frisk shuffles back a little more, deeper into the shadows, and at the same time MK creeps forward.

Undyne moves so fast she’s a blur. Before Frisk can even blink MK is being dangled in the air by their throat. They stare at Undyne in shock and more than a little bit of awe. Then they snarl and kick, trying to free themself. Frisk stands, ready to protect their friend.

Undyne drops them in disinterest and turns away, searching the previous area for the human she was just chasing.

Mk scrambles to their feet. They cast a glance back at Undyne before Frisk reaches them. The human is staring wise eyed at the armoured monster and tugging insistently on the monster child’s striped sweater.

The two children and one flower make a hasty get away. Not once does Frisk take her eyes off of Undyne, and not once does the fish monster look their way. She probably assumed it was only MK running. Frisk would have cried from the sheer relief she felt, except that would give them all away.

Despair hit her just as they reached the end of the dead grass. _How am I meant to survive distracting HER for so long?_ She bites her lip. _Maybe I should have listened to Flowey after all..._

MK leads the way to the next cavern, making sure to create as little noise as possible. They stop only when they are certain the Second in Command can no longer see or hear them.

“Yo, did you see that!? Undyne was totally scared by my fierce fighting skills dude!” They exclaimed, then more quietly, mumbled. “I am never washing my face ever again.”

Frisk giggles, then looks them over in concern. “Are you okay?”

MK frowns. “What kind of question is that yo? You being stupid or something? Even if I was hurt, which I’m not, you wouldn’t be able to beat me! So don’t even think of it dude!”

Frisk quickly backtracks. “Of course I wouldn’t! We’re allies, remember?” They still didn’t look convinced, so Frisk continued. “I just thought it would be best to check. You went up against Undyne! Not many monsters can say they fought her and got away without so much as a scratch, you know?”

The monster child perks up after that. “No, not many can, can they? I, however, am one such monster!” They puff up proudly, then grin at the two before them. “Man, are you unlucky though. If I hadn’t of been there, you would have been able to fight her for sure! Then you could have gotten the title for yourself!”

Frisk and Flowey both shudder simultaneously. Had Undyne found them, it would have been an entirely different story. MK pats Frisk’s back with their tail in sympathy, obviously taking their shudders of fear as disappointment.

“It’s alright dude, don’t worry. I’m sure we’ll get another chance.”

With that they bound ahead, running for the next cave. They fall on their face just before they make it, but they turn it into a roll and scramble back to their feet smoothly enough Frisk wonders how often they fall. It had to be a lot, to have that much practice.

Frisk takes a quick look around the room. A lone piece of broken wood lies in one corner. There’s a small hole next to it, similar to a mouse hole, except with jagged cracks like teeth. Something pink is glowing in the hole, and a horrid smell makes Frisk scrunch up her nose. A Save Star is glowing happily in front of a growing echo flower.

Frisk wanders up to the blue flower, surprised it’s still intact. She listens closely for whatever message it holds.

“SQUEAK!”

Frisk leaps back in alarm. The loud, angry voice of a mouse’s squeak echoes again from the flower. Flowey giggles at her, and Frisk pokes her tongue out at him.

Her hand brushes through the Save Star.

Frisk tries to brush off what just happened. “Come on, let’s go Flowey.”

Flowey only giggles at her some more. It doesn’t sound right to Frisk. It’s too high pitched, too shaky, too fake. Then again, they did just get away from Undyne. Death had literally been staring them in the face for the first time since Snowdin.

The girl’s hands begin to shake. _I don’t like that thought._

Frisk stumbles her way to the next, thankfully brightly lit, cavern. She spots Sans immediately.

Sans sees her at the same moment from his place next to a rusty, but otherwise well-kept, telescope. “Wh-where have y-you been ki-kiddo?”

Frisk stares at him with wide eyes and shakes her head. “Sorry.”

Her voice is far too small, and Flowey does his best to comfort his friend. He gives her his version of a hug and pats the little human’s hair. Frisk pets his petals appreciatively.

Flowey speaks up for her. “We ran into Undyne just now.”

Sans curses. “Wh-where is she now?”

“Probably still searching the dead grass back there. We managed to escape without her noticing, but who knows how long it’ll be before she figures it out.”

More curses. “R-right. Time to p-put this plan i-into action th-then. You good ki-kiddo?”

Flowey stares at her with concern. “Frisk?”

Frisk jolts, then shakily nods. “I’m okay. Let’s do this.”

“J-just remember, if you’re ca-caught b-by her magic, stand your g-ground. It’ll be your best h-hope.” Sans studies her for a moment before nodding. “Good luck kiddo.”

“Thanks Mr Sans.” Frisk smiles, and in a blink the smaller skeleton is gone.

Frisk squares her shoulders, determined. “You ready Flowey?”

“As ready as I’ll ever be.” He grumbles. “Let’s lead the Royal Guards’ crazy Second in Command on a wild goose chase.”

Frisk would cheer, if it wasn’t for the growing dread in her chest. Undyne is not someone she wants to mess with, not after seeing her up close. But she can’t back out now! So many people are depending on her. She could do this, with Flowey by her side.

Frisk walks forward, eyes open for a certain fishy monster to run away from.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi guys.   
> This chapter is mostly unedited. It's 24 minutes passed midnight. I have a two hour road trip tomorrow, and I get crazy car sick. And I am somehow not failing school, so ya know what, I thought I'd celebrate the start of school holidays by getting this chapter up this week no matter what! Whoo!  
> Let me know if there are any mistakes, please, my eyes are blind without glasses and I can't see anything. Goodnight, and I'll see ya in the next (hopefully sooner) chapter!  
> ~Cupcakezys~


	32. Straight Out Of A Fairy-tale

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Better late than never! I hope.

Attracting the attention of a murderous fish was about as easy as you’d think. That is to say, within minutes of wandering around the new area of Waterfall, Frisk was running as fast as her legs could carry her.

There was a loud cry from behind her and a blood red spear whizzed past Frisk’s ear. “GET BACK HERE HUMAN SCUM!”

Frisk, of course, simply ran faster. Flowey helped her, guiding her through the darker caverns and knocking aside spears that came just a little too close for comfort. The whole time Undyne was screaming at them, and Frisk learned quite a few new insults.

There were times when Frisk and Flowey managed to lose the pissed off monster, and the two children were able to rest, in a sense. While Fisk could sit down and give her legs a break, she constantly found herself checking over her shoulder.

Now, as she slowly wondered through an area that was completely pouring down with rain, Frisk found herself especially glad Flowey was with her. As soon as the sound of rain – _rain, underground! How amazing!_ – started up from the room beyond, Flowey formed his vines over their heads as a makeshift umbrella.

Frisk had been confused, at first. _There’s a box of umbrellas right there. Why can’t we just use one of those?_

Flowey had quickly shown her why, hovering a long vine over the box until spikes shot out from the wall, skewering it. Frisk swallowed and hurried along.

_... it’s nice here. Calm, though I know I shouldn’t relax._ Frisk stops and breathes in the smell of falling rain. It’s different from what it is on the surface. Stuffy, colder, and instead of the smell of grass and trees there’s only rock and dust. _Despite everything, it’s still nice. I wonder how many monsters notice it? ... not many, I’d bet._ A few more breaths and she continues walking. _What Papyrus is doing with the King, getting those new laws past so the Guard protect the people, perhaps then monsters will be able to stop and appreciate the little things without having to look over their shoulders._

The thought steeled her resolve to distract Undyne. Frisk was determined to do her part.

“YO!”

Frisk felt quite proud that she didn’t even flinch at the sudden yell. MK scrambles over to them, almost slipping on the wet ground. Frisk reaches a hand out to steady them, but they growl and stand tall. Which only put them just barely above Frisk, but they did their best to be intimidating all the same.

“Don’t touch!” They snap, then grin. “Nice umbrella! Didn’t get fooled by the trap then?”

Frisk shakes her head with a grin. “No way! We’re way too smart to fall for that!”

Flowey gives her a look, but Frisk ignores it. She was too smart to fall for it _now,_ so it technically wasn’t a lie.

Flowey gives up with a sigh. “Are you going this way too?”

MK looks at Flowey for a second, calculating, then nods. “Let’s go.”

Frisk smiles and starts walking, a comfortable silence falling over the three children. The sound of rain against their ‘umbrella’ is soothing, and Frisk finds herself humming a made-up melody. It seemed strangely fitting for this place.

After a few minutes of silence MK speaks up. “Captain Papyrus is really cool, and really strong.”

Frisk nods, not really sure where they were going with this.

MK grins happily, and kicks at the puddle at their feet. “Undyne is cool too! In fact, don’t tell anyone I said this, but I think she’s cooler than the Captain! She’s so strong, and she captured the last human soul that fell down here!”

Frisk’s eyes widen. “Really?”

“Yeah!” MK gushes. “I heard it was really cool! That human never even stood a chance. Man, I’d hate to be a human down here. Undyne would defeat them, and take their soul to the King, and then not only would we be free, but Undyne would go back to being the Captain again!”

Frisk nods along, a strained smile on her face, while Flowey tries to look as calm as possible. Frisk keeps walking, and MK hurries to stay under the umbrella.

Silence falls between them again, though now there’s an undertone of tenseness that ruins the easy silence from before. Frisk’s mind was in turmoil, and Flowey’s wasn’t much better. All the two could do was hope the little monster never found out their secret.

It takes a moment, but Frisk stops when she realises MK isn’t walking with them anymore. Flowey points a little ways behind them, and Frisk watches curiously. The kid had a strange look on their face, a little like nostalgia, but not quite.

Without turning to look at them they open their mouth. “You know dude, they say the most powerful, most terrifying monster in all of the Underground is King Asgore. Even Undyne and Papyrus are afraid of him. But...” They frown at their feet. “He came to my school once. We were all practicing our magic, and he’d come to see how his ‘future soldiers’ were doing, or something like that.”

They stop then, and when it becomes clear they aren’t going to speak again, Frisk steps forward. MK startles, like they’d forgotten the two others were even there. Flowey swallows hard and Frisk smiles at them, motioning for them to continue.

“Heh.” MK chuckles and shrugs uncomfortably. “It’s just the King wasn’t actually... horrible, when I saw him. He was helping kids control their magic, teaching everyone new tricks. It was kinda fun.”

Frisk blinks. _That’s the complete opposite of what everyone has been telling me about the King._

MK coughed and quickly dashed under the umbrella, though they’re already soaking wet by now. “Let’s continue on, alright? It’s stupid, and I was probably just reading him wrong or something.”

“No.” Flowey whispers, soft but sure. “You weren’t. He’s... softer, around kids. No adult sees that side of him.”

MK stares at Flowey like he’d just grown another head. “How do you know that?”

Flowey flinches, hard enough that his vine umbrella trembles and nearly breaks, causing a few stray drops to catch on Frisk’s face. She quickly raises a hand to reassure her friend, while keeping eye contact with MK.

“Flowey met him, a few times, and he apparently wasn’t all that bad. It must be just when he’s around kids.”

Mk ponders this, then nods. “It makes sense actually, considering what happened to the Prince.”

Again, Flowey flinched, though this time it was far less noticeable.

“Yeah, it does.” Frisk started walking again, one hand still stroking Flowey’s petals to comfort him.

Frisk’s humming fills the silence this time, and slowly all three children relax, the rain working it’s calming magic into their souls.

Before long they found the end of the Raining Room, as Flowey had dubbed it, and MK shook themself off while Frisk looked around.

This room was dark, and huge, and looking up Frisk couldn’t help but gasp. There were thousands upon thousands of glowing crystals, mirroring stars almost perfectly, suspended in the ceiling. Flowey stared with her, and MK cackled.

“Did you miss this when you came to Snowdin?”

Frisk nodded, not able to tear her eyes away.

“Huh. Well, now you know why so many people choose to walk instead of take the Riverperson’s ferry.”

“It’s beautiful.” Frisk whispers.

MK cackled again, and carefully guided her forward a few more steps. “If you think the ceiling’s pretty, why don’t you get a load of this?”

Without warning her head in nudged down by a vine, Flowey apparently knowing what MK wanted without the little monster having to say anything.

Frisk can’t hold in her gasp, eyes going as wide as saucers. Before her, a little in the distance, stood a fairy-tale castle. Surrounded in a soft red glow, reminding Frisk of the glow of her soul, three large towers stood proudly atop an ancient castle, which in turn towered over a sprawling city than disappeared into the darkness of the caves surrounding them.

_Whoa..._

“Pretty awesome, right?” MK asks, grin just a little smug.

Frisk nods, not taking her eyes off the beautiful sight before her. “I could stare at it for forever.”

“I know what you mean.” Flowey murmured.

MK glanced between the two and the castle, a small frown on their face. They huffed and ran forward, out from under the umbrella, and almost immediately faceplanted into a puddle. The splash and cry of outrage from the armless monster broke the other two children from their trance.

Frisk ran over to them, reaching out to help them before stopping. “Are you hurt?”

They wiggle around and onto their feet, glaring in an attempt to mask their embarrassment, although with how red their face was it wasn’t really working. “I’m fine! Don’t even think of mentioning what just happened to anyone, you got that? I’ll dust you!”

Frisk held up her hands and smiled. “We would never. I’m glad you’re okay.”

They grumbled, face flushing some more, before showing off their fangs in a smirk. “Of course you are! Without a strong ally like me you’d both be lost!”

“Yeah.” Flowey deadpanned. “That’s exactly right.”

MK laughed proudly, then ran forward. “Let’s go!”

Frisk laughs with them, and Flowey grumbles at them both, but he’s smiling too. The three children run through the rain, not caring any longer if they get wet. Before long they reach the end of the giant cavern and enter another smaller one. It’s still raining here, and there’s another trap bucket of umbrellas.

“Aw man! I forgot some jackass stole the stairs.” MK whines.

Frisk looked up to see what they meant, and found herself staring at a stone wall. She could just barely make out the path continuing on the higher ledge.

“Oh great.” Flowey groaned.

“How are we meant to get up there?” Frisk asked.

Flowey hummed and opened his mouth, but MK spoke before he could. “I have an idea! Dude, come here.”

They ran up and leaned against the wall, and Frisk followed behind them after Flowey shrugged. “Why?”

“Just stand still!” They called once Frisk was next to them. Frisk frowned, but before she could ask what they were doing the small monster rushed forward and somehow through Frisk’s flailing manoeuvred her onto their shoulders. “There! Reach up to the ledge dude!”

Frisk laughed, letting go of her frantic hold on MK’s head spike. The little monster had surprised her with how fast they had moved. Flowey’s magic had reacted on instinct, and his white petals disappeared with Frisk’s laughter.

Frisk managed to haul herself up onto the ledge, then stared awkwardly down at her friend. “How are you going to get up? I don’t think we can pull you.”

Flowey opens his mouth, but is once again cut off by the other monster. “I’ll find another way up! I always do.” He ran back to the giant cavern, and called over his shoulder. “Don’t die without me, okay dudes?”

Before either Frisk or Flowey could answer they were gone.

Frisk stared after her friend. “Well then.”

“I can’t believe they’re just gone. I was going to help them up with my vines.” Flowey sounded personally offended as he pouted after MK.

Frisk’s eyes widened and she laughed. “That’s actually a really good point.”

“Yeah, well, if they had let me say it before running off like that, then they wouldn’t have to be running around Waterfall right now.” The small flower grumbled.

Frisk smiled and shrugged. “They didn’t look too upset by it.”

The human struggled to her feet and stretched. The path ahead looked even less inviting than all the others, but there was no other way forward. Besides, they had lost Undyne ages ago, it would probably be a good idea to pull her into another chase.

She wasn’t sure when Papyrus would be done with his visit to the King. She had been given an old cell phone by Toriel the last time she saw her, but she had yet to get a call from anyone. Suddenly curious, she pulled her phone out.

“Do you think I should call one of them?” She asked Flowey.

The monster shrugs. “I don’t think it would be a good idea to call Papyrus, but Mu-Toriel or Grillby might pick up. Smiley probably won’t.”

“Don’t call him that Flowey, it’s not nice.” Frisk scolded as she called the number under Toriel’s name. “Let’s see if this old thing even works.”

Flowey snorted. The two listened to the phone ring... and ring... and ring. Finally the call cut off, indicating no one had picked up in time. Frisk was a little disappointed, but she tucked her phone away safely in her pocket. _I’ll just have to try again later._

The rain stopped. Pieces of stone littered the ground of this new cavern, and the gorge marks in the wall are similar to the one in the rooms before. _This must be more torn down monster history._

A bright Save Star glows in the middle of the room, and Frisk skips to it happily. The warmth from the little golden star warms her hands, though the rest of her is still dripping. Flowey relaxes against her, and Frisk happily starts humming again. She was getting very good at humming.

The new room she skipped to was dripping water, not the pouring rain from before, but more like a dribble. It was dark in here, and Frisk couldn’t help the shiver that ran up her spine. The stone floor turned into to what looked like a giant wooden bridge, its beams stretching and winding into the darkness. _I don’t like this place._

“Where do you think Undyne is now?” Frisk asked, trying to calm her nerves. “We haven’t seen her in ages.”

Flowey does his best to shrug. “No clue.”

Frisk opened her mouth to respond, only to yell as the floor below her turns blood red. She stumbles backwards just as a sharpened spike erupts from the wood, magically leaving the timber unharmed, though Frisk knew she wouldn’t share the same fate if she were caught.

A quick glance below her feet reveals the armoured form of Undyne, and before she can think she’s running into the darkness and across the bridge, dodging spears left and right.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey Everyone.  
> I know I'm late again, but hey, I promise I'm still working on chapters whenever I get the time. And the good news is the next chapter (which is a direct continuation of this one) is already mostly written, so it should (should) be up sooner than this one was. :)  
> I hope you all enjoyed!   
> ~Cupcakezys~


	33. *Spear Of [Corruption] Justice Intensifies*

“Stop!” Flowey screamed for the third time in thirty seconds.

Frisk skidded, her feet barely stopping in time as a spear erupted from the ground. It was so close she could feel the power humming off it, magic turned deadly by murderous intent. The same feeling was radiating off the armoured monster below, and Frisk idly wondered _what does she look like under that armour? Papyrus didn’t really tell me much._

The spear disappeared into nothing, and Frisk was moving the instant the space in front of her faded to black. Experience has taught her that at soon as one attack fades another takes its place. Sure enough, the humming magic of the spear sounds where she had been standing only a second beforehand, and a second later another spear bursts into existence to her left.

By now Frisk had gathered Undyne couldn’t actually see them. Although all her spears come dangerously close – sometimes fatally so – they weren’t as accurate as she thought the Second in Command would be. She must be listening to her foot prints, and judging roughly where the little human and flower were. A few times she had gotten lucky, catching the exact spot Frisk moved to, but for the most part the duo was doing a good job of dodging her.

Flowey hisses, then points to the left. “That way!”

Frisk instantly jerks left, missing the spear that comes up to stop her with barely any room to spare. It helped immensely, having Flowey there to guide her. She’d be truly lost without him, seeing as the wooden platform beneath her feet twisted and turned in hundreds of different directions. Frisk would have never found the way out on her own.

“Quick, turn left, that’s the exit!” Flowey called.

Frisk dashes left, her feet skidding on the wood as spears explode all around her. One spear clips her arm, and pain blossoms from her shoulder to her wrist in an instant. She grits her teeth and pushes on. The winding wooden path expands, becoming a giant platform of sorts. Frisk can see the faint light up ahead, coming from a new cavern.

The humans’ footsteps are drowned out as ten, twenty, thirty, spears appear all at once, stabbing through the ground and disappearing within seconds of not hitting their marks. Frisk managed to somehow dodge them all, Flowey warning her whenever a spear got to close. The wide platform tunnels again, this time forming a straight bridge to the exit.

The spears slowly stop appearing as Frisk grows closer, until they’d stopped altogether. Frisk turned, looking around for the monster that had chased her relentlessly. There was no sign of her anywhere.

“Where’d she go?” Frisk whispered, too afraid to speak any louder.

“I don’t know.” Flowey whispered back, glancing around uneasily. “Let’s just get out of here, the exit’s right there.”

Frisk swallowed. “Right.”

She backed up a few steps, then turned and began sprinting again. There were no more sounds of spears forming to skewer her, and frankly Frisk found it unnerving, how Undyne had suddenly just disappeared.

_She’s not the type to just give up. She’s up to something, I know it, but what?_ Frisk didn’t know, and none of her guesses were very comforting.

“Stop!” Flowey yells.

Startled, Frisk stumbles to a stop, just in time. So lost in thought, Frisk hadn’t noticed the way the wooden platform beneath her feet suddenly ended. She stares wide eyed at the steep drop, the darkness below seemingly falling forever. Flowey urges her back, and Frisk doesn’t hesitate to follow. As captivatingly scary as the darkness was, it wasn’t enough to erase the knowledge that all it would take was a little push and she’d be over the edge.

Frisk stares at the cavern beyond, the other room so close and yet so far. “Where... where did the rest of the bridge go?”

Flowey hisses. “Undyne. She destroyed it! This is a trap, Frisk we have to go now!”

Frisk was already on her feet, bolting back the way they had just come. Her legs were starting to ache from the constant running, her arm was going numb, and her breaths were nothing more than sharp, painful gasps at this point. Still, she ran as fast as she could trying desperately to get out of a trap that had already been sprung.

The sound of armoured feet sounded from ahead of Frisk, and without thinking she jerked to a stop. Her legs locked up, fear and adrenaline telling her to run back the way she had come, but she knew it was pointless. There was nowhere for her to go.

She was caught, helpless as a fish out of water.

Undyne approached slowly, tauntingly, a glowing red spear in each hand. The red coming out of her helm flowed behind her, like a floating streak of blood. Frisk swallowed, unable to move or hear whatever it was Flowey was whispering in her ear.

_She’s terrifying._

Undyne laughed, sharp and cold, and a hundred spears formed behind her. Each spear rose up, casting a haunting glow on the three. They stared at each other, and Frisk thought she saw the red glow of an eye from the helmet, before all the spears came crashing down.

The little human screamed, and her body was jerked back without warning or her own consent. Vines wove around her form, pulling her back farther as the spears hit the wood at Frisk’s feet. Several more spears come crashing down as Undyne cackled away. Flowey kept forcing her back until the spears stopped.

Undyne stopped laughing, her gaze heavy on Frisk’s small form. Frisk almost thinks she’s going to say something, but before she could the ground started shaking. The two children screamed as wood splintered and broken from Undynes’ attacks, just that much too far on the physical side for the wood to remain together.

Frisk desperately reached out as she started to fall, and Flowey’s vines flew out, only to miss by an inch as gravity took over. Complete darkness swallowed the two, and a stunned fish monster stood above as the two children disappeared from sight.

*****

**Her sisters’ cry echoed in her ears.**

**“RUN!”**

**Her feet reacted before she could even think, and she bolted after her big sister. They weaved between the trees, excited whoops and yells coming from the men chasing after them. Her sister pulled her to a stop and began urgently searching her pockets.**

**“What are you-”**

**“Keep running. If you go far enough up the mountain they won’t dare follow you.” Her sister told her.**

**Frisk shook her head. She couldn’t just leave her. She wouldn’t.**

**Then her sister pulled out a gun. “Go. I’ll distract them for as long as I can.”**

**Again, Frisk shook her head. “I won’t just abandon you!”**

**The voices of the men were getting dangerously close now.**

**“I’ll meet you at our place once I get away alright?” She said.**

**“Promise?” Frisk asked.**

**Her sister smiled at her. “I promise. Now go!”**

**Frisk hesitated a moment more, then ran deeper into the forest and higher up the mountain. The sound of gunshots filled her ears. Tears obscured her vision, making it hard to see the trees she constantly tripped over and ran into.**

**She didn’t once look back, not even when the gunshots stopped. Then she was falling, and she couldn’t look back if she wanted to.**

*****

Frisk groaned. Her arm felt like it was on fire, and while Flowey had done his best to slow her landing her back still hurt from where she had landed. Something soft tickled her nose, and the same softness cushioned her legs, confusing the poor girl. They felt like... petals?

_What?_

Hesitantly she opens her eyes to the world. All she can see at first is yellow, yellow and green. It smells like dirt. The sound of rushing water surrounds her, though she doesn’t feel wet. The image of a sprawling forest, echoing with gunshots and the laughter of men lost to their demons, has her bolting upright in an instant. Tears cloud her eyes and her breathing becomes strained as she desperately scans around, waiting for those horrible men to jump out at her.

So she’s confused, for just a second, when she registers the cave around her and the patch of golden flowers she’s sitting on. Then her adventure over the past few days catches up with her, and she relaxes slightly into the soft flowers. Once the beating of her heart had settled into something resembling normal, Frisk stood. Her back protested, and her arm screamed at her, but she was determined to get a good look around.

The cave she had fallen into was glowed with the faint purples of Waterfall, so at least she hadn’t travelled far. Wherever she was. A giant waterfall ran into the distance, starting at the wall on her left and not stopping for the rest on the room. A giant pile of garbage held her attention for a long few moments before she continued her examination.

Now she really looked, there was water surrounding her on all sides, the golden flowers that she had landed on the only part of dry ground, besides the pieces of broken wood that floated around. Perhaps the flowers had broken her fall? That sounded almost right.

The golden flowers sparked something in the young human, and she quickly searched herself. “Flowey? Flowey where are you?”

Frisk’s cries were desperate, and only grew more so when she didn’t find her flower friend. She called for him, louder than before, but no one came.

_Oh no! Where could he be? What happened to him when we fell? I didn’t see him in the flowers, so at least I didn’t crush him. Right?_ Frisk’s thoughts were going a mile a minute. _Oh gosh, what if Undyne got him? He could be her captive, or she could have killed him for being my friend! Oh no no no no no.... what do I do, what do I do?_

Frisk crouched down, staring into her reflection in the water. She looked worse for ware, haggard, and so tired. She wanted nothing more than to curl up and sleep, but even that was ruined with all the nightmares she’d been having. Not even rest could help her anymore.

She shook her head and stood. _No use in wallowing in bad feelings. Flowey’s got to be around her somewhere! And if he’s not, then I’ll just have to find him._

Determined now, Frisk nodded. The water was cold as she stepped into it, but it was a cold that helped her aches immensely. The pain in her arm had become a numb kind of burn, and she was pretty sure that wasn’t a good sign. Now though, it felt like it was getting better, the dull pain clearing away. Her back stopped aching quite as badly too, and Frisk concluded the water must have magic healing properties.

The room ended, funnelling into another room that was tiny in comparison. The waterfall here was smaller, though still quite big, and the piles of junk littered about were relatively smaller.

_Why is there junk everywhere down here anyway? Ugh, it smells gross._ Frisk scrunched her nose against the smell.

The glow of a Save Star called to her invitingly, though she hesitated. “Should I...?”

_Is what happened a good thing? Should I save, or do this all over again and hope for a better outcome?_

She was sure she was tearing her lip to shreds with her teeth, but in that moment she didn’t really care. She weighed up all the pros and cons, and decided, in the end, just what it was she would do.

Warmth flooded her injured arm, washing away the rest of her pain like the waterfalls here washed away loose garbage. The Save Star twinkled, and Frisk pulled her completely healed hand from its golden glow.

Whatever happened next, Frisk would be prepared to face it. She couldn’t face Undyne head on, and she couldn’t run away from her either. Promise or not, Frisk was determined to help Papyrus make his dreams a reality. No matter how many times she died she would make sure that never changed. No matter what happened, she wanted to help people.

For now, she had a best friend to find, and possibly, to save.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hiiiiiiiii Everyone!  
> Look at me, back again on time with another chapter! Well, I'm afraid that's mostly because I doubt I'll be able to get another one up for a while, life is getting hella busy for me in the next couple of weeks ya'll. I got exams, travelling, three day work placement looking after little kiddies, the whole shabang. Wish me luck!  
> Anyways, I hope you enjoyed, this was only lightly edited, so please point out any mistakes you see. We're about halfway through this story! [Process the fact this means there's roughly another 30 chapters to go.] Welp! I'm in it for the long haul I guess guys! :D  
> Thank you all for sticking with me through this, and for the encouragement you've given me. I know I haven't always been the best with constant updates, so thank you all for being so understanding and loving. You guys are all seriously the best, and as much as I write for me I write for you too. I want to share my joy with you guys, in the hope that you'll be able to feel at least some of that joy too. At the very least, I'm happy to be your distraction, or your escape, if that's what you need. This Cupcake has got your back guys! Always. <3  
> Catch ya'll next time, whenever that may be.  
> ~Cupcakezys~


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